Press Releases

Today, Congressman Ben Cline (VA-06) voted for, and the U.S. House of Representatives passed, the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2023 (H.R. 734). This legislation, which Rep. Cline cosponsored, ensures that biological males are prohibited from competing in athletic programs that are designated for biological females.

“The Radical Left’s blatant disregard for Title IX is a direct attack against female athletes who train so hard to compete and win,” said Cline. “Despite the clear scientific evidence of physical differences between men and women, the Left continues to pander to a woke political agenda as female athletes lose out on medals and scholarships to biological men. That’s wrong, which is why I’m proud to join my colleagues in passing this legislation to preserve the legacy of Title IX and ensure female athletes a fair playing field in competitive sports.”

The Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2023:

• Clarifies that a recipient of federal education funding violates Title IX’s prohibition against sex discrimination if the recipient operates, sponsors, or facilitates athletic programs or activities and allows a person whose sex is male to participate in an athletic program or activity that is designated for women and girls.
• States that the qualifications of “sex” are based on an individual’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.
• Clarifies that the bill’s provisions do not prohibit schools or institutions from permitting males to practice against women’s sports teams, protecting the long-standing routine of some women’s athletic programs of practicing or scrimmaging against males.

For more information, click here.

Congressman Ben Cline represents the Sixth Congressional District of Virginia. He previously was an attorney in private practice and served both as an assistant prosecutor and Member of the Virginia House of Delegates. Cline and his wife, Elizabeth, live in Botetourt County with their two children.

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