California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed on Monday the "Youth Sports Act for All" bill that prompts the creation of a commission to study youth sports equity.
The plan drew sharp Republican accusations that it’s a backdoor tactic to expand transgender athletes in girls’ sports, the New York Post reported.
The legislation is intended to study inequities in youth athletics, but Republicans warn the measure, AB 749, is a veiled attempt to weaken protections for girls’ sports.
Under the new law, the state’s Health and Human Services secretary must convene a blue ribbon commission to explore the feasibility of a centralized entity to regulate youth sports and recommend reforms to access and safety.
The commission’s report is due by January 2027.
Republicans, led by State Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones, sharply criticized the bill as a stealth move to allow "biological males to compete against young women and girls in youth sports."
In a Sept. 26 letter, Jones wrote: "The author and supporters of AB 749 know if they were upfront … it would be easily defeated.
"So instead, they are trying to establish a stacked commission to indirectly rig the issue in their favor."
Jones had also raised the issue of Newsom’s own remarks earlier this year, when the governor told conservative commentator Charlie Kirk that transgender women participating in girls’ sports was "deeply unfair."
Newsom said, "I completely agree with you on that.
"It is an issue of fairness … it’s deeply unfair."
Earlier, he added, "I am not wrestling with the fairness issue. I totally agree with you."
Assembly member Tina McKinnor, the bill’s sponsor, pushed back.
She accused Jones of misdirection and said he should focus on the "Trump Shutdown" rather than attacking transgender students.
"Senator Brian Jones’ time would be better spent writing to the Republican controlled Congress to end the Trump Shutdown and reopen the federal government, rather than attacking trans students," McKinnor said in a statement quoted by the Los Angeles Times.
The bill’s language addresses a broad set of issues — not just gender identity.
It tasks the commission with examining disparities in access by sex, race, income, disability, coaching standards, safety, and the "pay-to-play" model of youth sports.
The law is contingent on funding and is set to expire in 2029 (or, in some versions, later) unless further extended.
California already permits student-athletes to compete in school sports consistent with their gender identity.
This policy is under federal scrutiny: the Trump administration has filed a lawsuit accusing California’s rules of violating Title IX by disadvantaging cisgender girls, according to the Associated Press.
Newsom did not issue a new public statement upon signing AB 749.
Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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