Legislature(2021 - 2022)BUTROVICH 205

03/12/2022 10:00 AM Senate EDUCATION

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Audio Topic
10:02:16 AM Start
10:02:58 AM SB140
02:02:28 PM Adjourn
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+= SB 140 DESIGNATE SEX FOR SCHOOL-SPONSORED SPORTS TELECONFERENCED
Heard & Held
-- Public Testimony --
                    ALASKA STATE LEGISLATURE                                                                                  
              SENATE EDUCATION STANDING COMMITTEE                                                                             
                         March 12, 2022                                                                                         
                           10:02 a.m.                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
MEMBERS PRESENT                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
Senator Roger Holland, Chair                                                                                                    
Senator Gary Stevens, Vice Chair                                                                                                
Senator Shelley Hughes                                                                                                          
Senator Peter Micciche                                                                                                          
Senator Tom Begich                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
MEMBERS ABSENT                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
All members present                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
COMMITTEE CALENDAR                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
SENATE BILL NO. 140                                                                                                             
"An Act relating to school athletics, recreation, athletic                                                                      
teams, and sports."                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
     - HEARD & HELD                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
PREVIOUS COMMITTEE ACTION                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
BILL: SB 140                                                                                                                  
SHORT TITLE: DESIGNATE SEX FOR SCHOOL-SPONSORED SPORTS                                                                          
SPONSOR(s): SENATOR(s) HUGHES                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
05/12/21       (S)       READ THE FIRST TIME - REFERRALS                                                                        
05/12/21       (S)       EDC                                                                                                    
03/03/22       (S)       EDC AT 10:00 AM BUTROVICH 205                                                                          
03/03/22       (S)       Heard & Held                                                                                           
03/03/22       (S)       MINUTE(EDC)                                                                                            
03/12/22       (S)       EDC AT 10:00 AM BUTROVICH 205                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
WITNESS REGISTER                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
EMMA ZINK HATCHER, representing self                                                                                            
Douglas, Alaska                                                                                                                 
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MORGAN LIM, Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocate (PPAA)                                                                         
Juneau, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
DAVID IGNELL, representing self                                                                                                 
Juneau, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
NOAH WILLIAMS, representing self                                                                                                
Juneau, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
JACQUELINE WICWILLOW, representing self                                                                                         
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
VINCENT FEUILLES, representing self                                                                                             
Wasilla, Alaska                                                                                                                 
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
HAILEE WALLACE, representing self                                                                                               
Sitka, Alaska                                                                                                                   
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
ALEXANDER MORIARTY, representing self                                                                                           
Juneau, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
KATIE BOTZ, representing self                                                                                                   
Juneau, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
LINDSAY WILLIAMS, representing self                                                                                             
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
CHARLENE APOK, representing self                                                                                                
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
RYAN MORSE, representing self                                                                                                   
Sitka, Alaska                                                                                                                   
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
LIZ LYKE, representing self                                                                                                     
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
ALYSSA QUINTYNE, representing self                                                                                              
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
JULIA TERRY, representing self                                                                                                  
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
LESLIE FAILS, Minister                                                                                                          
Unitarian Universalist Fellowship                                                                                               
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
ROBERT WICWILLOW, representing self                                                                                             
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
KELLY NASH, representing self                                                                                                   
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
JUDY ELEDGE, representing self                                                                                                  
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
KAREN BAKER, representing self                                                                                                  
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
KYNDLE KIRBY, representing self                                                                                                 
Palmer, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Called in support of SB 140.                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
DIDI PETERS, representing self                                                                                                  
Kenai, Alaska                                                                                                                   
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MARY ELIZABETH KEHRHAHN-STARK, representing self                                                                                
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
VALORRAINE DATTAN, representing self                                                                                            
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
LIN DAVIS, representing self                                                                                                    
Juneau, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
KASSANDRA SMILEY, representing self                                                                                             
Eagle River, Alaska                                                                                                             
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MAEVE SPIEGLER, representing self                                                                                               
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
JUSTINE SLATER, representing self                                                                                               
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
CAROLINE PORTER, representing self                                                                                              
Palmer, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
EMILY BUTLER, representing self                                                                                                 
Juneau, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
JANICE PARK, representing self                                                                                                  
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
RICHARD "OLE" LARSON, representing self                                                                                         
Wasilla, Alaska                                                                                                                 
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
JESSICA ROZATO, representing self                                                                                               
Denali, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
CHANDA FILE, representing self                                                                                                  
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
CHRISTINA EUBANKS, representing self                                                                                            
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MO DART, representing self                                                                                                      
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MATTHEW SAMPSON, representing self                                                                                              
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
EMILY COHEN, representing self                                                                                                  
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
KIMBERLY BRILL, representing self                                                                                               
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
LISA GENTEMANN, representing self                                                                                               
Eagle River, Alaska                                                                                                             
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
FRANA BURTNESS-ADAMS, representing self                                                                                         
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
JULIE SMYTH, representing self                                                                                                  
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
ROBIN RHOADS, representing self                                                                                                 
Juneau, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
ELLIE HOGENSON, representing self                                                                                               
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
SARAH MURTADA, representing self                                                                                                
Palmer, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
ARLEIGH HITCHCOCK, representing self                                                                                            
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
JESSICA GREENE, representing self                                                                                               
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Offered testimony in opposition to SB 140.                                                                
                                                                                                                                
KENDAL KRUSE, representing self                                                                                                 
Palmer, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
GRETCHEN GORDON, representing self                                                                                              
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
SUMMER ANDERSEN, representing self                                                                                              
Haines, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MARY SZATKOWSKI, representing self                                                                                              
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
REBECCA CULLENBERG, representing self                                                                                           
Wasilla, Alaska                                                                                                                 
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
CHRISTY MARVIN, representing self                                                                                               
Palmer, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
PHILLIP MOSER, representing self                                                                                                
Juneau, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
SALLY POLLEN, representing self                                                                                                 
Palmer, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
RAYMOND LEE, representing self                                                                                                  
Soldotna, Alaska                                                                                                                
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
BROOK BEVERIDGE, representing self                                                                                              
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
BRIDGET MARYOTT, representing self                                                                                              
Homer, Alaska                                                                                                                   
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
KASEY CASORT, representing self                                                                                                 
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
VERONICA HOWARD, representing self                                                                                              
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
GAIL LIMBAUGH-MOORE, representing self                                                                                          
Soldotna, Alaska                                                                                                                
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
TAYLOR MORGAN, representing self                                                                                                
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
REBECCA DEBUSK, representing self                                                                                               
Palmer, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
CEDAR POLTA, representing self                                                                                                  
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
BERT HOUGHTALING, representing self                                                                                             
Big Lake, Alaska                                                                                                                
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
JULIA DENOTO, representing self                                                                                                 
Denali, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MELISSA SYPHUS, representing self                                                                                               
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
DAVID NEES, representing self                                                                                                   
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
SUZY CROSBY, representing self                                                                                                  
Wasilla, Alaska                                                                                                                 
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
MARINA DAY, representing self                                                                                                   
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
ELIZABETH CHASE, representing self                                                                                              
Kasilof, Alaska                                                                                                                 
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
SARA CHAPELL, representing self                                                                                                 
Haines, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
CHAMI KRUEGER, representing self                                                                                                
Wasilla, Alaska                                                                                                                 
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
WILLIAM MCKENZIE, representing self                                                                                             
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
JAIME YOU, representing self                                                                                                    
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
JACQUELYN GOFORTH, representing self                                                                                            
Palmer, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
APRIL GARZA, representing self                                                                                                  
Eagle River, Alaska                                                                                                             
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
TRACEY WIESE representing self                                                                                                  
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
GREG WEAVER, representing self                                                                                                  
Mat-Su, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
MARK ZIMMERMAN, representing self                                                                                               
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
JACOB BERA, representing self                                                                                                   
Peters Creek, Alaska                                                                                                            
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
ERIN WILLAHAN, representing self                                                                                                
Anchorage, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
DR. MAUREEN LONGWORTH, representing self                                                                                        
Juneau, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
CAITLIN KIRBY, representing self                                                                                                
Haines, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
JEREMY HAWK, representing self                                                                                                  
Kasilof, Alaska                                                                                                                 
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
ELEILIA PRESTON, representing self                                                                                              
Wasilla, Alaska                                                                                                                 
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in support of SB 140.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
MOLLY MILLER, representing self                                                                                                 
Kodiak, Alaska                                                                                                                  
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
ROSE O'HARA-JOLLEY, representing self                                                                                           
Fairbanks, Alaska                                                                                                               
POSITION STATEMENT: Testified in opposition to SB 140.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
ACTION NARRATIVE                                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
10:02:16 AM                                                                                                                   
CHAIR  ROGER   HOLLAND  called  the  Senate   Education  Standing                                                             
Committee meeting to  order at 10:02 a.m. Present at  the call to                                                               
order were  Senators Begich, Micciche, Stevens,  Hughes and Chair                                                               
Holland.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
        SB 140-DESIGNATE SEX FOR SCHOOL-SPONSORED SPORTS                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
10:02:58 AM                                                                                                                   
Chair Holland announced the consideration  of SENATE BILL NO. 140                                                               
"An  Act  relating  to  school  athletics,  recreation,  athletic                                                               
teams, and sports."                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
He  commented  that   this  is  the  bill's   second  hearing  in                                                               
committee. The  purpose of  this special  Saturday meeting  is to                                                               
have sufficient time to hear  the huge amount of public testimony                                                               
generated  by SB  140  and to  maximize time  for  the public  to                                                               
provide  input  outside  of  normal  working  hours.  It  is  the                                                               
intention to  hear everyone that  signed up before 11:00  am with                                                               
testimony limited to  two minutes. Testimony may  be submitted in                                                               
writing to [email protected].                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
10:04:02 AM                                                                                                                   
CHAIR HOLLAND opened public testimony on SB 140.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
10:04:36 AM                                                                                                                   
EMMA ZINK HATCHER, representing  self, Douglas, Alaska, testified                                                               
in  opposition  to  SB  140,  citing  the  legal  principle  that                                                               
inclusion is  the default. Democratic societies  require evidence                                                               
to  take away  human rights.  Children's rights  cannot be  taken                                                               
away  without evidence,  and the  burden  of proof  falls on  the                                                               
entity  attempting  to take  away  rights.  The  onus is  on  the                                                               
legislature  to  provide data  that  transgender  women have  the                                                               
physical  advantage and  that women  competitors stand  no chance                                                               
within  the  fair  margin   of  competition  against  transgender                                                               
competitors.  She   knows  this   data  is   nonexistent  because                                                               
collegiate  and  Olympic  committees   have  robust  policies  to                                                               
include transwomen at elite levels  of competition. She quoted an                                                               
American Academy of Pediatrics amicus brief on this subject:                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
     For transgender individuals,  being treated differently                                                                    
     from other men and women  can cause tremendous pain and                                                                    
     harm.   More  specifically,   exclusionary  laws   that                                                                    
     prevent transgender girls  and women from participating                                                                    
     in   school  sports   consistent   with  their   gender                                                                    
     identity, an  important facet of their  lives, disrupts                                                                    
     medically     appropriate      treatment     protocols.                                                                    
     Exclusionary  laws  threaten   to  exacerbate  risk  of                                                                    
     anxiety,  depression,  low   self-esteem,  engaging  in                                                                    
     self-injurious   behaviors,  suicide,   substance  use,                                                                    
     homelessness,   and  eating   disorders,  among   other                                                                    
     adverse  outcomes,  that many  transgender  individuals                                                                    
     face. Those risks are already too serious.                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
She wrapped up, stating the  interface between being a sore loser                                                               
and discrimination should not be  allowed to shape policy. She is                                                               
a runner,  and it is fundamental  to her identity. In  every race                                                               
won, from childhood  through adulthood, she passed  many men. She                                                               
wants  transgender   girls  and  women  on   the  starting  line,                                                               
competing with  them. She  will celebrate  their wins  with them.                                                               
Transgender women  belong in  women's sports  and do  not deserve                                                               
this type of discrimination.                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
10:08:08 AM                                                                                                                   
MORGAN LIM, Planned Parenthood  Alliance Advocate (PPAA), Juneau,                                                               
Alaska, testified  in opposition  to SB 140.  He stated  that the                                                               
bill  is blatantly  discriminatory  and designed  to exclude  and                                                               
deny  trans girls  the  ability to  participate  fully in  school                                                               
sports  and  their  school  community.   SB  140  is  part  of  a                                                               
coordinated  nationwide attack  aimed  at  erasing and  excluding                                                               
trans people from sports, school  communities, and all aspects of                                                               
public  life. Trans  youth  should be  treated  with dignity  and                                                               
respect  and have  the opportunity  to live  a healthy  life like                                                               
everyone  else.   Denying  trans  students  the   opportunity  to                                                               
participate  in sports  strips them  of many  benefits associated                                                               
with  school sports,  including better  self-esteem and  improved                                                               
grades.  Trans  students  deserve   the  same  chances  to  learn                                                               
teamwork, sportsmanship,  leadership, and self-discipline  and to                                                               
build  a sense  of  belonging  with their  peers  like all  other                                                               
students. When trans athletes are  excluded from participation on                                                               
a sports team that aligns  with their gender identity, the result                                                               
is  often  exclusion  from  sports   altogether.  This  leads  to                                                               
stigmatism  and  isolation  of trans  students  which  undermines                                                               
their  health,  safety,  and social  and  emotional  development.                                                               
Trans  kids want  the opportunity  to  play sports  for the  same                                                               
reason other  kids do,  to be a  part of a  team where  they feel                                                               
like they  belong. We  encourage lawmakers to  see this  bill for                                                               
what it is  really about: whether lesbian,  gay, bisexual, queer,                                                               
and transgender  (LGBTQ) people should  be treated fairly  in all                                                               
aspects of  life or unfairly  targeted and excluded  just because                                                               
of who  they are. PPAA-Alaska strongly  urges Education Committee                                                               
members not to pass it from committee and to oppose SB 140.                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
10:10:36 AM                                                                                                                   
DAVID  IGNELL, representing  self, Juneau,  Alaska, testified  in                                                               
opposition to  SB 140, citing  Proverbs 31:8 which says  to speak                                                               
up  for  the  rights  of  those that  need  an  advocate.  He  is                                                               
committed to  protecting the constitutional rights  of all Alaska                                                               
citizens fairly and equitably. He is  partly in favor of the bill                                                               
but  is   mostly  opposed.  The  legislative   process  is  about                                                               
compromise; one easy issue to  compromise on would be eliminating                                                               
language that gives adults the right  to sue and seek damages. He                                                               
has learned  that youth sports  need both  a player and  a coach,                                                               
let kids  have fun, and  keep parents and  lawyers out of  it. He                                                               
expressed  his belief  that  SB  140 will  bate  lawyers to  file                                                               
lawsuits,  and  he is  opposed  to  legislation that  does  this,                                                               
especially  where youth  sports are  concerned. He  has a  bigger                                                               
issue with  SB 140's  fairness. He questioned  the intent  of the                                                               
bill  and asked  if  it is  about legislating  one  set of  moral                                                               
values over another by using youth  sports as a prop. He parlayed                                                               
a bad  memory, expressing empathy  for those in  competition with                                                               
athletes  with an  unfair physical  advantage. However,  he added                                                               
that  this bad  experience did  not wreck  his career.  A college                                                               
coach watching in the stands  offered him a scholarship after the                                                               
game, the point  being there is so much more  to sports than wins                                                               
or losses.  The proponents  of this bill  submitted an  Air Force                                                               
study that  found transgender  women have  a 20  percent physical                                                               
advantage  in  some  areas.  He  countered  this  study,  stating                                                               
athletes gain an advantage in various ways.                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
10:13:52 AM                                                                                                                   
At ease.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
10:14:24 AM                                                                                                                   
SENATOR HOLLAND reconvened the meeting.                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
10:14:50 AM                                                                                                                   
NOAH WILLIAMS,  representing self,  Juneau, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition  to  SB  140, stating  the  Alaska  School  Activities                                                               
Association (ASAA)  makes the rules  in state athletics.  Any one                                                               
student  or parent  who had  a concern  about performance  deltas                                                               
between  assigned female  at  birth and  assigned  male at  birth                                                               
athletes would  complain to ASAA. ASAA  Director Billy Strickland                                                               
explained, "Your numbers are your  numbers. You are not recruited                                                               
because you  are a  state champion in  Alaska. You  are recruited                                                               
because you run a 10-second  100-meter dash." Mr. Strickland went                                                               
on to  call this a  solution looking for  a problem. Most  of the                                                               
people Senator  Hughes invited to  testify were not  from Alaska;                                                               
coincidently,  similar anti-trans  legislation is  simultaneously                                                               
popping  up  in state  legislatures  around  the country.  It  is                                                               
almost like  a nationally orchestrated political  effort to build                                                               
capital  in the  lead-up to  an  election year.  He expressed  an                                                               
inclination to believe that Senator  Hughes is not transphobic as                                                               
far as arbitrarily hating minorities;  unfortunately, she shows a                                                               
willingness  to bully  the most  vulnerable people.  He expressed                                                               
anger  at  this,  and  it   has  raised  the  attention  of  data                                                               
scientists  and  investigative  journalists in  his  sphere.  The                                                               
people funding this effort will  be exposed, and the reputational                                                               
costs to  those that support  it will exceed the  political gains                                                               
made.                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
10:17:25 AM                                                                                                                   
JACQUELINE  WICWILLOW,  representing   self,  Fairbanks,  Alaska,                                                               
testified in  opposition to  SB 140, stating  Alaska has  a proud                                                               
history  of accepting  others which  has  strengthened our  state                                                               
immeasurably.  It would  be  terrible to  abandon  the legacy  of                                                               
people like Elizabeth Peratrovich  and declare trans children and                                                               
youth  are not  equal  to their  peers or  entitled  to the  same                                                               
rights,   privacy,  dignity,   or  opportunities.   SB  140   has                                                               
compounded a  message of inequality, specifically,  banning trans                                                               
girls from participation but not  trans boys. Even if adhering to                                                               
the definition of  biological sex, SB 140 has  an inherent gender                                                               
bias. To declare  SB 140 protects the equal  rights of biological                                                               
females is  patronizing and  demeaning, not  only to  trans youth                                                               
but to  every biological  female athlete. If  SB 140  is reported                                                               
out, the committee sends the  message that biological females are                                                               
less than their biological counterparts.  She urged the committee                                                               
to ponder the motivations behind  this bill, who it protects, who                                                               
it hurts, and what message it  sends to girls of every biological                                                               
designation.  She asked  whether SB  140 sends  the message  that                                                               
women are equal to men or  if it sends a patronizing message that                                                               
women are children and need protection.                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
10:19:29 AM                                                                                                                   
VINCENT FEUILLES,  representing self, Wasilla,  Alaska, testified                                                               
in opposition to  SB 140, stating the bill  sets a discriminatory                                                               
precedent, attempts  to instigate the  erasure of trans  youth by                                                               
creating a  legally designated category of  "other," and violates                                                               
Title IX  based on sex. This  attempt is cashed in  a language of                                                               
concern  based on  a false  narrative designed  to ignite  public                                                               
fears. He views the  bill as a step to create  a boogieman out of                                                               
the trans  community. This legislation  will harm  children, both                                                               
transgender and  cisgender. Beyond the obvious  physical benefits                                                               
that all  youth receive from  participating in sports,  there are                                                               
psychosocial  benefits,   good  sportsmanship,   teamwork,  self-                                                               
discipline,  and listening  skills  that are  gained  as well  as                                                               
community involvement. Sports are  also about the camaraderie and                                                               
acceptance of being  on a team. In short, it  is about belonging.                                                               
SB 140  seeks to make  trans youth "others" while  teaching youth                                                               
who identify as the sex assigned  at birth to avoid those who are                                                               
"other."  Young people,  transgender, and  cisgender should  have                                                               
their  dignity respected.  Young trans  people experience  stigma                                                               
and challenges  that their  cisgender peers  are not  subject to,                                                               
and exclusion from sports would  negatively affect them. He cited                                                               
longitudinal  studies  conducted  by Professor  Christina  Olson,                                                               
Princeton   University.  These   studies  showed   that  treating                                                               
transgender and  gender nonconforming  youth with  acceptance and                                                               
support  decreases the  issues they  experience with  depression,                                                               
anxiety, and suicidal ideation within  the normal ranges of their                                                               
peers.  When  discussing youth  in  sports,  it is  important  to                                                               
remember that  in preadolescent children,  which are part  of the                                                               
legislation's  target,  there   are  no  significant  differences                                                               
between  the  sexes.  According  to  medical  experts,  prior  to                                                               
puberty, boys do  not have any physical  advantages. These points                                                               
show that  SB 140 is  unnecessary when discussing youth  who have                                                               
yet  to   experience  puberty,  but   are  still   included.  The                                                               
guidelines for adults cannot be applied  to youth as they are not                                                               
the   same.  Affirming   a   child's   gender  means   consistent                                                               
recognition  of their  gender in  all areas  and stages  of their                                                               
life. This is backed by  the American Planning Association (APA),                                                               
the   American  Medical   Association  (AMA),   and  many   other                                                               
organizations.  SB 140  is contradictory  to this.  He urged  the                                                               
committee  to cease  action  on the  bill  and the  fearmongering                                                               
associated with it.                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
10:22:41 AM                                                                                                                   
HAILEE WALLACE,  representing self,  Sitka, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition to  SB 140, stating this  bill will do more  harm than                                                               
benefit  and will  only benefit  those who  are not  transgender.                                                               
This  bill will  damage many  trans  children. She  cited a  2021                                                               
Trevor Project National Survey that found that during 2020:                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
- 42 percent of LGBTQ children considered attempting suicide and                                                                
- over half of those were transgender or nonbinary,                                                                             
- 12 percent of those were white and                                                                                            
- 31 percent of those were native or indigenous peoples.                                                                        
- 94  percent of  all LGBTQ youth  reported that  recent politics                                                               
have affected their mental health.  The legislature has the power                                                               
to make laws that affect their  bodies and what they can do; they                                                               
feel powerless in the decision-making process.                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
MS. WALLACE stated  that Alaska has the highest  rates of suicide                                                               
and  depression;  moreover, these  rates  are  even higher  among                                                               
LGBTQ  youth.  The  government  should  focus  on  improving  the                                                               
environment  of  the  more  vulnerable  LGBTQ  youth  population,                                                               
rather than making populations that  are uncomfortable with trans                                                               
people  more comfortable.  SB 140  sends the  message that  it is                                                               
okay to  exclude a segment  of the population  from participating                                                               
in women's athletics based on bias.                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
10:24:50 AM                                                                                                                   
ALEXANDER MORIARTY, representing  self, Juneau, Alaska, testified                                                               
in opposition  to SB  140. He  cited people  as saying  girls and                                                               
women should have their own  space to practice sports, then added                                                               
girls  and women  include  trans women.  Sports  lessons are  not                                                               
about winning or losing but  about being mentally fit, physically                                                               
fit, strong, and happy.                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
10:26:15 AM                                                                                                                   
At ease.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
10:27:40 AM                                                                                                                   
CHAIR HOLLAND  indicated the teleconference system  had technical                                                               
difficulties;  callers should  hang  up and  redial. The  call-in                                                               
deadline will be  extended from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00  p.m. if there                                                               
are enough interested testifiers.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
10:28:15 AM                                                                                                                   
At ease.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
10:52:39 AM                                                                                                                   
CHAIR  HOLLAND  reconvened  the  meeting,  apologizing  to  those                                                               
waiting to get  reconnected. He said the committee  plans to hear                                                               
all   call-in  testifiers   today.   Video   streaming  was   not                                                               
interrupted, so  the meeting will  continue with  video testimony                                                               
while technical staff work on the teleconference system.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
10:53:21 AM                                                                                                                   
KATIE  BOTZ,  representing  self, Juneau,  Alaska,  testified  in                                                               
support of SB  140, stating Alaska is number one  in sexual abuse                                                               
and crimes.  She said that Alaska  has a high suicide  and mental                                                               
illness  rate, attesting  to both  personally. She  has advocated                                                               
for public safety  over the years and is  concerned about women's                                                               
safety in locker rooms shared  with transwomen. She asked whether                                                               
the physical change from man  to woman also changes that person's                                                               
mental state.  She said this  question needs a  definitive answer                                                               
in a  state with the  highest rate  of sexual assault  and crimes                                                               
nationwide, because females can commit  crimes too. She asked the                                                               
committee  to  consider  that  it is  difficult  to  validate  an                                                               
assault in a place where no one else is looking.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
10:55:58 AM                                                                                                                   
LINDSAY   WILLIAMS,   representing   self,   Anchorage,   Alaska,                                                               
testified in  support of SB 140,  stating she is a  member of the                                                               
first recognized NCAA  Division II cross country  running team at                                                               
the University  of Alaska-Anchorage (UAA)  in the year  2000. She                                                               
was awarded an athletic scholarship  for running and continued to                                                               
compete  at  the  collegiate   level  until  2004.  Cross-country                                                               
running was  her ticket through college.  She expressed gratitude                                                               
that she could compete for UAA  and earn a bachelor's degree. She                                                               
hopes the same opportunity is  available to other young women who                                                               
dream  of attending  college and  competing in  athletics at  the                                                               
highest  level.  Collegiate  athletes push  their  bodies  beyond                                                               
their  limits and  run faster  than they  ever thought  possible;                                                               
that being said,  her abilities never came close to  those on the                                                               
men's team.  In college cross  country running, men and  women do                                                               
not race the same  distances. Men race an 8k and  women race a 5k                                                               
in the  regular season; at  nationals, men  race a 10k  and women                                                               
race  a 6k.  The  following  are examples  of  men's and  women's                                                               
running  abilities  in  an  NCAA   Division  I  track  and  field                                                               
championship:                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
- 100 meter  men ran 10.11, women ran 10.74                                                                                     
- 1500 meter  men ran 3.35, women ran 4.08                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
MS.  WILLIAMS expressed  gratitude  that equality  for men's  and                                                               
women's  sports   exists  today.   If  an  individual   wants  to                                                               
participate in  sports, the opportunity  is available to  all. SB
140  does  not  change  that,  but it  does  preserve  equity  in                                                               
athletics.  The playing  field is  equal when  biological females                                                               
compete against biological females,  and biological males compete                                                               
against  biological males.  She is  a cross  country coach  and a                                                               
track and field  coach. She also coaches youth  flag football and                                                               
soccer for  coed teams.  She loves athletics  and the  lessons it                                                               
teaches  youth.  She  supports preserving  equity  in  athletics,                                                               
which is why she supports SB 140.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
10:58:41 AM                                                                                                                   
CHARLENE  APOK, representing  self, Anchorage,  Alaska, testified                                                               
in  opposition to  SB  140. She  has a  minor  in gender  women's                                                               
sexuality studies and a Ph.D.  related to gender studies as well.                                                               
She works for  Native Movement as the Director  of Gender Justice                                                               
and  Healing.   Transgender  participation  in   sports  benefits                                                               
everyone,  including   cisgender  women.  She  identifies   as  a                                                               
cisgender  woman, and  women do  not  need any  more policing  of                                                               
women in their  bodies. Women do not need any  more subjection to                                                               
invasive  practices  and  harmful  accusations in  this  area  of                                                               
sports and otherwise. Instead,  including trans athletes promotes                                                               
values of  nondiscrimination among  all students.  Much testimony                                                               
has  focused  on  whether  people's  participation  is  equal  or                                                               
unequal;  part  of  the  well-being of  trans  athletes  and  all                                                               
athletes  is their  mental  and emotional  health.  The rates  of                                                               
suicide and mental health issues  among trans people are high; SB
140  excludes them  and will  exacerbate those  issues. Exclusion                                                               
can  be deeply  harmful and  undermines team  unity. Part  of the                                                               
reason young  people participate  and benefit  from participation                                                               
in sports  is that teams  create a  sense of belonging,  yet this                                                               
bill encourages divisiveness.                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
11:01:09 AM                                                                                                                   
RYAN  MORSE,  representing  self,  Sitka,  Alaska,  testified  in                                                               
opposition to SB  140. He said the Senate  Education Committee is                                                               
charged with  the jurisdiction over  the programs  and activities                                                               
for all  students here in Alaska,  and an important part  of that                                                               
is ensuring equity for all  students. SB 140 would stigmatize and                                                               
isolate trans  students in  schools and  recreational activities,                                                               
undermining  their  health,  safety,  and  social  and  emotional                                                               
development. No  student of  any age, race,  or gender  should be                                                               
subjected to  this. This  bill violates  basic privacy  rights by                                                               
making teachers  and coaches police  whether or not a  student is                                                               
transgender. Schools are not legally  authorized to do this under                                                               
medical  privacy  and nondiscrimination  laws.  This  bill is  an                                                               
unnecessary overreach and a discriminatory one at that.                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
11:02:33 AM                                                                                                                   
LIZ  LYKE, representing  self,  Fairbanks,  Alaska, testified  in                                                               
opposition to SB  140, stating she is a  44-year-old trans woman.                                                               
The opportunity  to exist  as an  out trans  or queer  person was                                                               
limited due  to high  levels of  homophobia and  transphobia when                                                               
she was in high school, which  there is less of among kids today.                                                               
She  expressed sadness  that adults  are choosing  to bring  back                                                               
phobias  from  days  of  old. Committee  members  are  wrong  for                                                               
considering SB 140. She asked  members to consider the well-being                                                               
of youth  and let them  be the guide; they  do not have  the same                                                               
concerns and they are much more accepting.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
11:04:05 AM                                                                                                                   
ALYSSA QUINTYNE, representing  self, Fairbanks, Alaska, testified                                                               
in opposition  to SB 140,  stating she  lost friends due  to this                                                               
type of legislation. This bill has  nothing to do with the mental                                                               
health  of  anybody. Trans  athletes  are  attacked, harmed,  and                                                               
harassed,  yet SB  140 does  nothing to  address this  issue. She                                                               
said that  growing up, it  was difficult when people  debated and                                                               
argued  about where  she should  be able  to exist  based on  her                                                               
race. Children are affected by  conversations that question their                                                               
humanity and  whether they would  assault another student  in the                                                               
bathroom. She said this is  evidenced by the five students buried                                                               
at  Birch  Hill   in  Fairbanks.  She  maintained   that  if  the                                                               
legislature had wanted to help  athletes, it would have written a                                                               
companion  bill for  the  sexual consent  law  last session.  She                                                               
asked legislators  to consider the  consequences to  all affected                                                               
by SB 140.                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
11:06:52 AM                                                                                                                   
JULIA TERRY,  representing self, Anchorage, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition to SB  140 as a former student-athlete,  the parent of                                                               
a current student-athlete,  a spouse of a minister,  and a social                                                               
worker who works with vulnerable people.                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
Mx.  Terry uses  the pronouns  "they and  them" and  is concerned                                                               
about the following:                                                                                                            
- The blatant  attempt of this bill to  isolate transgender young                                                               
people from their peers;                                                                                                        
-  the environment  of disrespect  for  human dignity,  amplified                                                               
when anti-trans sentiments are given a platform; and                                                                            
-  mitigating  the harm  caused  by  misinformation spread  about                                                               
transgender young people.                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
Mx.  Terry developed  internal  resources  and qualities  through                                                               
participation in school sports,  such as: confidence, leadership,                                                               
respect, patience, and resilience,  all of which were life-saving                                                               
and led to a career  celebrating and supporting trans and gender-                                                               
expansive young people every day.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
Mx. Terry  is an  out nonbinary  fem person  who models  to young                                                               
trans people the  possibility of striving against  all odds. When                                                               
society fosters a  sense of belonging, place, and  purpose in one                                                               
another,  the result  is healthier  communities. Please  focus on                                                               
the  well-being of  young people,  protect student-athletes,  and                                                               
act against SB 140, Mx. Terry urged.                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
11:09:26 AM                                                                                                                   
LESLIE  FAILS,   Minister,  Unitarian   Universalist  Fellowship,                                                               
Fairbanks, Alaska, testified in opposition  to SB 140 as a mother                                                               
and   minister.  She   expressed  concern   for  the   safety  of                                                               
transgender children  and youth attending Alaska  schools and the                                                               
threats posed  to their psychological and  physical well-being by                                                               
this bill.  SB 140 excludes transgender  girls from participation                                                               
on  sports teams  alongside their  peers which  does nothing  but                                                               
inflict harm  on the vulnerable.  Requiring teachers  and coaches                                                               
to  violate  the  privacy  of athletes  by  actively  seeking  to                                                               
identify who is transgender has  implications the committee might                                                               
need to explore fully, such  as an individual's right to privacy.                                                               
As a pastor serving people  in the transgender community, parents                                                               
convey  that these  types of  bills  terrorize their  transgender                                                               
children. Parents  worry about what  kind of cruelty  these bills                                                               
will enable people to inflict on  their children. She is proud to                                                               
live in  a state  that prides itself  on individuality  and self-                                                               
determination;  this is  a  sacred right.  For  this reason,  she                                                               
asked  the committee  to oppose  this distinctly  un-Alaskan bill                                                               
which appears to be part  of a broader Lower-48 legislative trend                                                               
that seeks to marginalize transgender student-athletes further.                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
11:11:35 AM                                                                                                                   
ROBERT   WICWILLOW,   representing   self,   Fairbanks,   Alaska,                                                               
testified  in opposition  to SB  140, stating  the bill  seems to                                                               
sweep nonbinary  people into hiding.  Trans people are  not going                                                               
away, like  women's rights to  vote or  to work alongside  men in                                                               
jobs. Oppressing the binary world  will only oppress children. No                                                               
one can control  how another self identifies.  If Alaskans preach                                                               
equality  and  acceptance, practice  those  values.  SB 140  does                                                               
neither. The gay,  lesbian, and trans community  cannot choose to                                                               
be different from what they are  any more than a black person can                                                               
change  skin  color.  Alaskans  can  either  accept  it  or  make                                                               
everyone's  lives  miserable.  SB   140  makes  everyone's  lives                                                               
miserable.                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
11:13:20 AM                                                                                                                   
ROSE   O'HARA-JOLLEY,  representing   self,  Fairbanks,   Alaska,                                                               
testified  in  opposition to  SB  140,  stating trans  girls  are                                                               
girls. She began to tell the story  of how she got her name, when                                                               
her call was dropped. She  reconnected and finished testifying at                                                               
the end of the meeting.                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
11:15:47 AM                                                                                                                   
At ease.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
11:16:40 AM                                                                                                                   
CHAIR HOLLAND reconvened the meeting.                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
11:16:55 AM                                                                                                                   
KELLY NASH,  representing self,  Fairbanks, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
support  of SB  140, stating  the  bill creates  a level  playing                                                               
field. She redirected the  dialogue, saying discrimination exists                                                               
everywhere.  She  brought  up  the last  two  years  of  COVID-19                                                               
mandates that  discriminated against school students  who refused                                                               
to wear  a mask  or be  vaccinated. She  urged everyone  to think                                                               
about the students who:                                                                                                         
- refused  to comply and were  not allowed to participate  in the                                                               
classroom or sports;                                                                                                            
- complied but did not want to; and                                                                                             
-  did not  comply and  committed suicide  because they  were not                                                               
allowed to play in all the reindeer games.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
11:18:16 AM                                                                                                                   
JUDY ELEDGE,  representing self, Anchorage, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
support  of SB  140 as  an educator  of 45  years in  Alaska. She                                                               
stated that organizations will bully  a person who disagrees with                                                               
their agenda.  She fought for  women's rights, was  thrilled when                                                               
Title  IX passed,  and is  appalled  that women's  sports are  in                                                               
jeopardy. She wondered  where all the feminists  who wanted equal                                                               
rights are  today because  their silence  is deafening.  She said                                                               
those in  the medical  community are not  speaking up  to protect                                                               
women; they  are ignoring basic  science. She expressed  her view                                                               
that the  American College of Pediatrics  opposes gender identity                                                               
in young children.  She recalled that women  participating in the                                                               
Olympics were  tested for banned substances  like testosterone to                                                               
ensure women  did not compete  with an  advantage in the  60s and                                                               
70s. This  bill has nothing to  do with what a  person chooses to                                                               
be and everything  to do with girls who worked  years to compete,                                                               
succeed, and win scholarships. Transgender  women may take female                                                               
hormones,  estrogen, and  testosterone blockers.  Still, it  does                                                               
not change their lung capacity,  heart size, upper body strength,                                                               
endurance, or other  features that give men  a physical advantage                                                               
over women  in athletic competition.  SB 140 brings  common sense                                                               
back into the  support of all young women; it  allows Alaskans to                                                               
stand with them; it will enable women  to say no to taking away a                                                               
woman's  right to  equality  in sports.  SB  140 prevents  taking                                                               
rights from one group and pitting them against another.                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
11:21:16 AM                                                                                                                   
KAREN BAKER,  representing self, Anchorage, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition to SB  140, stating this is a hateful  and cruel piece                                                               
of   anti-trans   legislation   without   scientific   or   moral                                                               
foundation.  SB   140  contains   no  "how  to"   guidelines  for                                                               
determining  a student's  sex. Tasking  coaches  and teachers  to                                                               
determine children's  biological sex  is unethical and  gross. It                                                               
would be creepy to ask the  bill sponsor and committee members to                                                               
prove  their sex.  She expressed  her belief  that this  bill was                                                               
motivated by bigotry. She expressed  her apologies to transgender                                                               
youth for SB 140 and  elected officials who believe the existence                                                               
and rights of trans youth are  up for debate. She emphasized that                                                               
transgender youth  are valued,  valuable, beautiful,  and enough.                                                               
Trans women  are women, trans  girls are girls, and  all children                                                               
deserve to play.                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
11:23:17 AM                                                                                                                   
KYNDLE  KIRBY,  representing  self,  Palmer,  Alaska,  called  in                                                               
support of SB 140, stating  she is currently a student-athlete at                                                               
Concordia University  in Nebraska where she  competes in shooting                                                               
sports  with  Olympic-level  competitors.   She  would  not  have                                                               
received  an  athletic  scholarship  if   she  had  not  had  the                                                               
opportunity  to pursue  and excel  in  her division  as a  female                                                               
athlete. Nor  would it have  been financially feasible  to attend                                                               
college out of  state, which was necessary to obtain  a degree in                                                               
secondary  education. This  female athletic  opportunity in  high                                                               
school made  it possible to  achieve higher education.  She wants                                                               
to return  to Alaska  to teach  and give  back to  the community.                                                               
Graduating this May  would not have been possible  without a sex-                                                               
specific  division to  compete. She  expressed her  understanding                                                               
that  SB  140  is  not  a discriminatory  bill,  but  a  bill  of                                                               
inclusion,  ensuring everyone  has the  opportunity and  right to                                                               
compete and excel  in their sport. If female  students are denied                                                               
or  discouraged  from   participating  because  biological  males                                                               
dominate   the   sport,   there    could   be   negative   social                                                               
repercussions.  Girls like  herself would  not be  able to  chase                                                               
their dreams  and afford  to attend  college, nor  become strong,                                                               
productive, influential, successful, and educated young women.                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
11:25:19 AM                                                                                                                   
DIDI PETERS, representing self, Kenai, Alaska, testified in                                                                     
opposition to SB 140, paraphrasing an opinion from LGBTQ athlete                                                                
Megan Rapinoe who wrote:                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
     I  remember how  I felt  when I  played soccer  for the                                                                    
     first  time.  Long  before  I  was  winning  World  Cup                                                                    
     matches,  I was  trying  to keep  up  with my  brother.                                                                    
     Soccer has  been a  part of  my life  since I  was four                                                                    
     years  old. I  spent hours  outside working  to perfect                                                                    
     that next move. I wanted to  be the best. Being able to                                                                    
     play sports  as a  children shaped  my life's  path. It                                                                    
     taught  me so  much more  than  seen on  the field  and                                                                    
     brought me  so much joy.  Every child deserves  to have                                                                    
     that  experience.  That's  why   I  believe  all  kids,                                                                    
     including   transgender  youth,   should  be   able  to                                                                    
     participate in sports they love.  Bills like SB 140 are                                                                    
     some of  the most  intense political assaults  on LGBTQ                                                                    
     people in recent years.  These efforts cause incredible                                                                    
     harm  to trans  youth. One  in three  transgender youth                                                                    
     reported  attempting  suicide  as one  national  crisis                                                                    
     prevention  organization reported  in 2019.  Bills like                                                                    
     SB 140 are  attempting to solve a  problem that doesn't                                                                    
     exist. Transgender  kids want  the opportunity  to play                                                                    
     sports  for the  same reasons  other kids  do: to  be a                                                                    
     part  of  a team  where  they  feel like  they  belong.                                                                    
     Proponents  of   these  bills   argue  that   they  are                                                                    
     protecting women. As  a woman who has  played sports my                                                                    
     whole  life, I  know that  the threats  to women's  and                                                                    
     girls' sports are lack of  funding, resources and media                                                                    
     coverage, sexual  harassment and  unequal pay.  You may                                                                    
     not know that  a person in your life is  trans. You may                                                                    
     not be aware of the  fullest self within your coworker,                                                                    
     friend,  relative or  even the  child  playing in  your                                                                    
     living  room. Trans  people contribute  meaningfully to                                                                    
     our  society: our  schools, neighborhoods,  communities                                                                    
     and  families. Trans  people  deserve dignity,  respect                                                                    
     and opportunity.  Bills like  SB 140  are an  attack on                                                                    
     the humanity and belonging of  trans people, and that's                                                                    
     why this  issue is important to  me as a member  of the                                                                    
     LGBTQ community.  The value of participating  in sports                                                                    
     is well-documented.  Transgender kids deserve  the same                                                                    
     chances  to enjoy  sports;  to  gain confidence,  self-                                                                    
     respect  and leadership  skills; and  to learn  what it                                                                    
     means to  be part of  a team. When we  tell transgender                                                                    
     girls  that   they  can't  play  girls'   sports     or                                                                    
     transgender boys  that they can't  play boys'  sports                                                                      
     they  miss  out  on  these  important  experiences  and                                                                    
     opportunities. And  we lose  the right  to say  we care                                                                    
     about children.                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
11:27:34 AM                                                                                                                   
CHAIR HOLLAND announced that no new  callers will be added to the                                                               
queue because about 80 people already were waiting to testify.                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
11:28:09 AM                                                                                                                   
MARY  ELIZABETH  KEHRHAHN-STARK,  representing  self,  Fairbanks,                                                               
Alaska, testified in  opposition to SB 140, stating  this bill is                                                               
crafted  to  exclude  transgender  youth from  sports  and  their                                                               
school  community. SB  140 violates  student  privacy by  forcing                                                               
educators and coaches to identify  and separate transgender youth                                                               
from  their peers.  It encourages  bullying  by setting  students                                                               
apart, stigmatizing,  ostracizing, and isolating them  from their                                                               
school community. She recalled her  adolescence as a time of peer                                                               
pressure,    intense   yearning    for   acceptance,    and   yet                                                               
paradoxically, the challenge of feeling  the avoidance of who she                                                               
was. SB  140 doubles  down on this  reality. She  asked committee                                                               
members to consider how SB 140  will affect young people who will                                                               
be isolated  from their peers,  compounding their  loneliness and                                                               
depression.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
11:31:29 AM                                                                                                                   
VALORRAINE   DATTAN,   representing  self,   Anchorage,   Alaska,                                                               
testified in  opposition to SB 140,  stating the bill is  a gross                                                               
invasion  of  privacy  and  seems like  yet  another  attempt  to                                                               
control  women. A  bill that  forces  educators to  delve into  a                                                               
minor's  private  life  and  genitalia   on  school  property  is                                                               
disgusting  and frightening.  Both biological  females and  trans                                                               
women are subject to repression.  Trans women are women. She said                                                               
no one  should be  near another's parts  unless invited,  and she                                                               
doubts  trans athletes  are interested  in proving  their gender.                                                               
The  right to  privacy protects  a person's  medical history  and                                                               
choices. Children  should be protected, and  this bill's invasion                                                               
of privacy does  not protect kids. It does  not protect cisgender                                                               
children,  nor   does  it   protect  transgender   children.  She                                                               
encouraged a  no vote on  SB 140  to protect everyone's  right to                                                               
privacy.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
11:33:50 AM                                                                                                                   
LIN  DAVIS,  representing  self,  Juneau,  Alaska,  testified  in                                                               
opposition  to SB  140, stating  she has  worked for  LGBTQ human                                                               
rights since the 70s. She  presents as androgenous but identifies                                                               
as  she/her. Women's  field  hockey got  her  through school  and                                                               
trans girls should  not be denied this sort of  stepping stone of                                                               
life.  SB 140  expands  a kind  of shunning  and  shaming into  a                                                               
horror show  for young Alaskans.  It is extreme  and un-American.                                                               
It will  turn Alaskans against  each other and  it is a  river of                                                               
cruelty.  This bill  goes  to show  that if  you  can get  people                                                               
riled-up,  you can  mesmerize some  minds into  a vote.  Globally                                                               
many trans  athletes have  competed for  years, including  in the                                                               
last  two  Olympics  and  the  Iditarod,  and  no  problems  have                                                               
surfaced. Trans women are not  destroying women's sports and they                                                               
are  not winning  much. In  Connecticut and  West Virginia  trans                                                               
girl athletes  have won  their right to  compete. SB  140 fosters                                                               
harm  to anyone  who is  different, especially  endangering trans                                                               
women of  color and  black women who  already are  vulnerable and                                                               
experience high rates of murder throughout the country.                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
11:36:48 AM                                                                                                                   
KASSANDRA  SMILEY,   representing  self,  Eagle   River,  Alaska,                                                               
testified in  opposition to SB 140.  She is a former  high school                                                               
and middle  school athlete, school administrator  who worked with                                                               
minors, youth  sports coach  for almost  15 years,  and mandatory                                                               
reporter trained to detect signs  and symptoms of child abuse and                                                               
sexual  assault. SB  140 proposes  a loophole  in the  protection                                                               
against  child  abuse and  sexual  assault  of  a minor  and  the                                                               
traumatization of  young girls. This  bill seems to  target girls                                                               
specifically.  SB 140  does not  contain  language that  mentions                                                               
young  boys will  be  subjected to  random  underpants checks  to                                                               
determine their  biological sex. In  Section 2 of the  bill, Sec.                                                               
14.18.180,  defines  "school"  as  an  elementary,  junior  high,                                                               
secondary,  or postsecondary  school. This  bill fails  to define                                                               
the individual tasked with identifying  and determining a child's                                                               
biological sex. She expressed hope  that this task would not fall                                                               
to one  of the handful  of predators  that seem to  flock towards                                                               
childcare supervisorial  positions. SB 140 is  an open invitation                                                               
for  sexual  predators to  come  to  Alaska.  In Section  2,  the                                                               
language  in  Sec. 14.18.160,  shields  adults  and schools  from                                                               
complaints  and litigation,  giving  state-sponsored immunity  to                                                               
school  districts  or  any employee  assigned  to  determine  the                                                               
biological   sex  of   a  student.   The   bill  also   prohibits                                                               
investigation into  any incidence of  abuse or alleged  abuse. SB
140  protects  school  districts   and  private  schools  against                                                               
damages  for  complaints  filed against  them;  conversely,  they                                                               
could turn around and sue  for damages against a complainant. She                                                               
stated support for  trans students as a former  coach and thanked                                                               
the committee for listening today.                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
11:39:27 AM                                                                                                                   
MAEVE SPIEGLER,  representing self, Fairbanks,  Alaska, testified                                                               
in opposition  to SB  140, stating  it violates  young children's                                                               
sovereignty  and  removes their  bodily  autonomy.  This bill  is                                                               
absurd, ridiculous,  and easily  opposed. It permits  children to                                                               
be evaluated by someone other  than their parent or doctor, which                                                               
is  creepy   and  disgusting.  Transgender  people   are  divine,                                                               
sovereign,  and   a  valuable  part  of   the  community.  Alaska                                                               
struggles  with high  suicide rates  and has  drafted a  plan for                                                               
suicide  prevention. She  was a  suicide  prevention trainer  and                                                               
used to  uphold Alaska's suicide  prevention plan. She  said that                                                               
the best  thing you  can do  for a  person is  to show  them they                                                               
belong. SB  140 is  in direct opposition  to the  state's suicide                                                               
prevention  goals. Transgender  students  are at  higher risk  of                                                               
suicide  and passing  this bill  would aggravate  the issue.  The                                                               
bill is abhorrent. She asked the committee to do better.                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
11:41:25 AM                                                                                                                   
JUSTINE SLATER,  representing self, Fairbanks,  Alaska, testified                                                               
in opposition  to SB 140,  stating this bill further  removes the                                                               
autonomy  of an  already marginalized  group. SB  140 violates  a                                                               
person's right  to privacy and to  feel safe in school.  The bill                                                               
increases  stigmatization  in   the  transgender  community.  The                                                               
spirit of  this bill appears  to be fear  and an intention  to be                                                               
exclusionary.   According  to   Dr.   Deanna  Adkins,   Pediatric                                                               
Endocrinologist at the Duke Child and Adolescent Gender Clinic:                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
     When   a  school   or   athletic  organization   denies                                                                    
     transgender   students  the   ability  to   participate                                                                    
     equally in  athletics because they are  transgender, it                                                                    
     condones, reinforces, and affirms  the social status of                                                                    
     transgender  students  as   outsiders  or  misfits  who                                                                    
     deserve the hostility they experience from peers.                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
MS. SLATER  said that  believing and  perpetuating misconceptions                                                               
about trans athletes  is harmful. It increases the  risk of self-                                                               
harm and suicide. The negative  effect on trans youth affects the                                                               
entire community.  She is the  parent of  a trans youth  who came                                                               
out after a suicide attempt; he felt  unable to be who he is. She                                                               
was shocked and terrified at the  thought of losing her child. He                                                               
is thriving and  entering high school next  year, having accessed                                                               
medical and mental  health care. He has  re-engaged in activities                                                               
that   bring  him   joy.  After   seeing  nationwide   anti-trans                                                               
legislation,  he  asked  what  transgender  people  ever  did  to                                                               
deserve this.  The answer  is that  transgender people  have done                                                               
absolutely nothing.  Do not pass  this bill and show  all Alaskan                                                               
children that they belong and are supported.                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
11:43:53 AM                                                                                                                   
CAROLINE PORTER, representing self,  Palmer, Alaska, testified in                                                               
support  of SB  140, stating  she  played four  years of  varsity                                                               
college  tennis,  and her  mother  coached  varsity sports  at  a                                                               
university  in  Oklahoma,  all  before  Title  IX.  She  grew  up                                                               
watching her mother load the  station wagon for travel, the girls                                                               
brought their lunches,  and an aunt sewed  their uniforms; unlike                                                               
the  men's team,  there was  no funding  for women's  sports. The                                                               
team worked hard,  and despite no coach, they  had an exceptional                                                               
winning record. As  good as they were, they  could not physically                                                               
compete  with  men.  Men have  different  muscular  and  skeletal                                                               
structures.  Women athletes  of  that era  worked  to gain  equal                                                               
opportunities for women  in sports. Girls and  women athletes now                                                               
benefit from Title IX, and  one of these benefits is scholarship.                                                               
Thousands  of young  women would  not  have been  able to  attend                                                               
college without  an athletic scholarship,  and having  to compete                                                               
with a biological male  jeopardizes scholarship opportunities for                                                               
female athletes. It  is an insult to women who  fought so long to                                                               
protect women's sports.                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
11:46:20 AM                                                                                                                   
EMILY  BUTLER, representing  self, Juneau,  Alaska, testified  in                                                               
opposition to  SB 140,  asking committee  members to  consider in                                                               
detail what the  enforcement of this bill  entails, especially in                                                               
a middle or high school  locker room. The Department of Education                                                               
and Early  Development (DEED) will  be affected; it will  have to                                                               
define the exact biological difference  between a boy and a girl;                                                               
and someone will  have to come up with  measurement standards for                                                               
hormone levels  in millimeters.  This is not  easy to  do because                                                               
some   people  are   intersex,   meaning  they   are  born   with                                                               
characteristics of both sexes. Intersex  numbers are estimated at                                                               
.1 to 1  percent of the population although  most intersex people                                                               
do  not know  that  they are.  This number  includes  one in  ten                                                               
thousand people  born with genitals  ambiguous enough that  it is                                                               
unclear what sex  they are. One in ten thousand  is many students                                                               
in  Alaska.  Natural  variants  exist  between  male  and  female                                                               
bodies; for  example, some women  have high  testosterone levels,                                                               
and about  six in  one thousand boys  have a  micro-penis. Beyond                                                               
gender identity,  biology does  not fall  into a  neat "boygirl"                                                                
binary  category. What  this bill  proposes necessitates  that at                                                               
some point, a person would have  to evaluate the genitals or test                                                               
the hormones of  a minor to assess their fitness  for sport at an                                                               
amateur  scholastic  level.  Amateur   sports  are  for  fun  and                                                               
development,  but SB  140  could create  a  culture of  anxiously                                                               
worrying  about the  fitness of  one's genitals  and suspiciously                                                               
policing  one another  in  the locker  room.  Adolescence can  be                                                               
humiliating enough,  but anyone who  varies from the norm  in any                                                               
way or might defend their  privacy by avoiding nakedness in front                                                               
of peers  would immediately be  suspected, labeled invalid  or an                                                               
outsider. It  would not matter  whether the student was  trans or                                                               
cisgender, nonbinary or intersex,  because anyone different would                                                               
be  called an  outsider. Coaches  and other  adults would  have a                                                               
valid  reason  to  inquire  about and  inspect  the  genitals  of                                                               
minors, and  minors would have  a valid  reason to report  on the                                                               
genitals of  their peers  to adults.  SB 140  is unconstitutional                                                               
and  it is  inadvisable for  the state  to start  regulating. The                                                               
situation  is likely  to create  sexual harassment  and bullying,                                                               
and to facilitate  molestation and assault, both  among youth and                                                               
by  predatory adults.  SB  140 is  so  unconstitutional that  she                                                               
questioned the  motives of  those bringing  the bill,  knowing it                                                               
would likely be struck down in  court. The messaging of this bill                                                               
to  youth, cisgender,  straight,  nonbinary,  and transgender  is                                                               
that policing  the natural  features of  one another's  bodies is                                                               
the business of the school and  state. This is a horrible idea to                                                               
introduce  into the  already fraught  world  of adolescence.  The                                                               
bill is  unnecessary, cruel, invasive,  and can only  bring harm.                                                               
She urged the  committee to reject SB 140 and  save the state the                                                               
court fees.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
11:50:51 AM                                                                                                                   
JANICE PARK,  representing self, Anchorage, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition to  SB 140, saying  it is an intentionally  cruel bill                                                               
that will  hurt children.  Transgender children  have a  right to                                                               
their own  identity and  self-esteem. SB  140 could  be extremely                                                               
damaging. She quoted from the Journal of Interpersonal Violence:                                                                
                                                                                                                                
"Eighty-two  percent of  transgender individuals  have considered                                                               
killing themselves  and 40 percent  have attempted  suicide, with                                                               
suicidality highest among transgender youth."                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
MS. PARK  said that  suicidality in  this context  means suicidal                                                               
ideation with  plans to carry  out their own  death. Contributing                                                               
factors to  this are societal  rejection, lack of  acceptance and                                                               
belonging,  and  stigmatization  at   school.  SB  140  puts  the                                                               
responsibility  of  determining a  child's  sex  on teachers  and                                                               
school staff. Imagine being the  person assigned to look into the                                                               
face of  a child, inspect a  child, determine whether or  not the                                                               
child conforms,  and have to  report the  child failed to  meet a                                                               
standard norm,  knowing that  child is at  high risk  of suicide.                                                               
Know that  passage of SB  140 could  condemn a child  to suicide,                                                               
she concluded.                                                                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
11:54:03 AM                                                                                                                   
RICHARD  "OLE"   LARSON,  representing  self,   Wasilla,  Alaska,                                                               
testified in  support of SB  140, stating that he  graduated from                                                               
high school before  the passage of Title IX. Title  IX gave women                                                               
equal  rights to  participate  in sports.  He  has witnessed  the                                                               
outstanding  achievements women  have  made over  the past  fifty                                                               
years. They have taken these  gains into the workforce and broken                                                               
barriers; fifty years  ago this was not  happening. He attributes                                                               
this to  Title IX. Male-bodied athletes  participating in women's                                                               
sports have put Title IX on  the shelf. Biological males are 20                                                                 
50 percent  better in all aspects  of sport. He cited  an example                                                               
of a  Penn State swimmer  who participated  for three years  as a                                                               
male  athlete,  ranking 540  in  the  nation. The  athlete  later                                                               
switched to  the women's  team, is setting  NCAA records,  and is                                                               
creeping up  on women's world  records. He has two  daughters who                                                               
participated on state-championship athletic  teams and he credits                                                               
high school  athletics for their  self-esteem and ability  to get                                                               
things done.  High school  athletics set  the tone  that rocketed                                                               
them into the  workforce as independent women who  stand on their                                                               
own. He  emphasized that SB  140 is necessary to  protect women's                                                               
sports.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
11:57:34 AM                                                                                                                   
JESSICA ROZATO,  representing self, Denali, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition to  SB 140, stating  it is increasingly  apparent that                                                               
this  bill  is  about  more than  prohibiting  trans  girls  from                                                               
participating  in  girls' sports.  It  is  more  like part  of  a                                                               
nationwide trend  that seeks to  exclude, isolate and  deny human                                                               
rights. She found  the invited testimony of the  retired male gym                                                               
teacher  from  Hawaii  unsettling  as  he  repeatedly  proclaimed                                                               
expertise  on the  bodily changes  of  a 13-year-old  girl as  it                                                               
readies  itself   for  childbearing.  She  has   read  about  the                                                               
puritanical history of this country,  what still happens in other                                                               
countries, and  the Handmaid's Tale. The  gym teacher's testimony                                                               
was chilling. Noting that gold  and silver Olympic medalist Lydia                                                               
Jacoby was mentioned  in the introduction, she  asked whether Ms.                                                               
Jacoby  or transgender  Iditarod  musher,  Quince Mountain,  were                                                               
contacted to comment on SB 140.                                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
MS.  ROZATO  said she  feels  empowered  as  a woman.  She  noted                                                               
Senator  Hughes pointed  out twice  that women  are fundamentally                                                               
disadvantaged;  and  in  the  spirit  of  open-minded,  inclusive                                                               
problem solving,  recommended transgender  and coed  teams. These                                                               
solutions  are  isolating  and  complicated  for  an  underfunded                                                               
Alaska  education system.  As a  queer woman  with a  transgender                                                               
partner, she stands with all  transgender and LGBTQ youth, family                                                               
members, and allies of all ages.                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
12:00:42 PM                                                                                                                   
CHANDA FILE,  representing self, Anchorage, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition  to  SB  140, stating  this  bill  is  discriminatory,                                                               
unfair, and  puts a target  on the backs of  transgender student-                                                               
athletes. It is horrific that  Alaska would consider singling out                                                               
trans  student-athletes, violating  their right  to privacy,  and                                                               
making them more vulnerable to  bullying and worse. Those seeking                                                               
to discriminate  against transgender  athletes are  utilizing the                                                               
50th  anniversary  of  Title  IX as  their  pedestal.  Those  who                                                               
support excluding  transgender women  from women's sports  do not                                                               
support women's  sports. Trans girls  and women are not  a threat                                                               
to  women's  sports or  the  progress  made  over the  past  five                                                               
decades;  however,  salary,  investment gaps,  and  coaches  that                                                               
abuse  players are.  Alaska has  a long  way to  go to  ensure an                                                               
equal playing  field for all  genders in sports,  and transgender                                                               
athletes should be welcome on the playing field.                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
12:02:15 PM                                                                                                                   
CHRISTINA   EUBANKS,   representing  self,   Anchorage,   Alaska,                                                               
testified  in opposition  to SB  140 as  a mother  of four  and a                                                               
member of  the National  Association for  the Education  of Young                                                               
Children.  This  professional  membership organization  works  to                                                               
promote  early learning  for children  and has  a code  of ethics                                                               
that   supports   all   children,  including   those   that   are                                                               
transgender.  SB  140  discriminates against  transgender  female                                                               
students. She  seconds the  testimony of  those who  opposed this                                                               
bill.                                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
12:03:08 PM                                                                                                                   
MO  DART,  representing  self, Fairbanks,  Alaska,  testified  in                                                               
opposition to SB  140 as a concerned community  member. She works                                                               
with many transgender  youths. Trans girls check  in after school                                                               
to  inquire about  the status  of  the bill  and want  to see  it                                                               
stopped. At the  same time, trans boys come in  after school from                                                               
wrestling  matches  and volleyball  games  and  are not  directly                                                               
affected.  There is  a lack  of consistency  in this  bill as  it                                                               
targets trans girls.  SB 140 offers no sense  of regulation about                                                               
who  will  be  body-checking  the girls.  She  urged  members  to                                                               
consider  the repercussions  of this  bill on  suicide prevention                                                               
efforts.                                                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
12:05:19 PM                                                                                                                   
MATTHEW SAMPSON, representing  self, Fairbanks, Alaska, testified                                                               
in  support  of  SB  140,  stating he  serves  on  the  Board  of                                                               
Education in Fairbanks. He thanked  Senator Hughes and others who                                                               
brought this commonsense bill forward.  SB 140 preserves fairness                                                               
in  Alaska. Pound-for-pound  males  are  generally stronger  than                                                               
females; state  records prove this  much. For this reason,  it is                                                               
unfair  to pit  males against  females in  athletic competitions,                                                               
then  award  medals  to male  winners.  Educational  institutions                                                               
should   stop  supporting   confusing  behavior   and  scientific                                                               
fallacies. No  one is  saying that  transgender girls  should not                                                               
self-actualize  and  live to  their  full  potential, but  female                                                               
athletes  deserve  the  same  consideration.   SB  140  is  about                                                               
respect, recognition, and equality.                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
12:07:25 PM                                                                                                                   
EMILY COHEN,  representing self, Fairbanks, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition  to SB  140, agreeing  with  previous testifiers  that                                                               
this bill  is a solution  looking for  a problem. The  passage of                                                               
this bill  would send a  clear message to all  transgender people                                                               
in Alaska  that they  are not  welcome here.  She is  a community                                                               
mental health provider  to children and teens in  Alaska, many of                                                               
whom are transgender.  Transgender exclusionary legislation leads                                                               
to  mental  health  challenges  for  trans  youth,  including  an                                                               
increased risk of  suicide. She urged committee  members to focus                                                               
their energy and  resources on pressing issues  in schools rather                                                               
than  regulating  children's  access  to  sports  and  concerning                                                               
themselves with what personal anatomy they possess.                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
12:08:41 PM                                                                                                                   
KIMBERLY BRILL,  representing self, Anchorage,  Alaska, testified                                                               
in opposition to  SB 140, stating the bill  is discriminatory and                                                               
intolerable.  Transgender youth  should have  the same  rights as                                                               
cisgender youth. She brought up  several concerns about the bill,                                                               
including  a lack  of facts  and questionable  impetus. She  said                                                               
genitalia inspections are not appropriate  to ascertain whether a                                                               
child is playing  on the "right" team. She noted  that the Trevor                                                               
Project  reported that  52 percent  of transgender  children have                                                               
thought about suicide  and 20 percent have  attempted it. Passing                                                               
this bill  will cause more  harm than good.  Transgender children                                                               
should have  the same rights to  play sports and live  their life                                                               
as cisgender children do.                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
12:10:34 PM                                                                                                                   
LISA   GENTEMANN,  representing   self,   Eagle  River,   Alaska,                                                               
testified  in support  of SB  140 to  protect women's  and girls'                                                               
sports. She  maintained that the following  documented facts show                                                               
why it  is unfair for  biological men to compete  with biological                                                               
women:                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
- The  men's record speed  for running the  mile is 3  minutes 43                                                               
seconds versus the women's record speed of 4 minutes 12 seconds.                                                                
                                                                                                                                
- The men's  bench press record is 782 pounds  versus the women's                                                               
bench press record of 605 pounds.                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
She urged committee  members to pass this bill  from committee to                                                               
protect  women  and  girls  from  an  unfair  playing  field  and                                                               
discrimination.  The chromosomes  XY and  XX are  not equal.  She                                                               
said gene is  gender noted at birth, and known  and given by God.                                                               
It is fair play for biological  men to compete with other men and                                                               
vice-versa  for biological  women  to compete  with other  women.                                                               
Many women  suffer abuse from  domestic violence, rape,  and male                                                               
domination in  Alaska. She does  not want further harm  to befall                                                               
Alaskan  women and  girls by  allowing  men to  dominate them  in                                                               
sports.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
12:13:13 PM                                                                                                                   
FRANA  BURTNESS-ADAMS,  representing   self,  Fairbanks,  Alaska,                                                               
testified in  opposition to SB  140, stating she grew  up playing                                                               
sports every day and all year  round in Fairbanks. The feeling of                                                               
hitting a  3-pointer at the buzzer,  flying over a hurdle  on the                                                               
track, hugging  teammates after  they scored  game-winning goals,                                                               
and road  trips with friends  and teammates, defined  high school                                                               
life. She  gained a  strong work  ethic, learned  what leadership                                                               
looked  and  felt  like,  figured  out  how  to  juggle  multiple                                                               
responsibilities simultaneously, pushed her  comfort zone, got an                                                               
expanded understanding  of the world,  and traveled to  new parts                                                               
of  this  spectacular state,  all  from  participating in  school                                                               
sports.  She  found  the  confidence  to  succeed  and  direction                                                               
through sports  during a time  of deep insecurity  experienced by                                                               
many high  school students. She  was motivated to  attend college                                                               
through  participation in  school  athletics. Passage  of SB  140                                                               
will  remove the  possibility  of these  types  of memories  from                                                               
hundreds of Alaskan children. She  asked why a senator would make                                                               
it a priority  to deny these opportunities  to anyone, especially                                                               
children.  She gained  life experience,  formed foundational  and                                                               
emotional  skills, and  learned life  lessons through  sports. SB
140  is  dangerous  and  cruel. The  bill  openly  and  blatantly                                                               
discriminates,  violates  basic  privacy  rights,  weaponizes  an                                                               
incorrect definition of  sex, and excludes students  from being a                                                               
part  of their  school community.  She ended  by saying,  "We are                                                               
here, we are queer, and we  will exist longer than Senator Hughes                                                               
will be in office."                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
12:15:37 PM                                                                                                                   
JULIE SMYTH,  representing self, Fairbanks, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition to  SB 140,  indicating that  she is  Inupiaq. Inupiaq                                                               
people choose their  gender as they grow older  per their culture                                                               
so Inupiaq names are genderless.  SB 140 would affect Inupiaq and                                                               
other people across the state, both  indigenous and not, as it is                                                               
common for people  to be transgender in many  cultures. This bill                                                               
would encourage lawsuits and asks  teacher and coaches to violate                                                               
the  privacy rights  of students.  This  bill is  not only  anti-                                                               
transgender, but it is anti-female.  Females are just as good, if                                                               
not better, than  males at sports. Girls'  teams were established                                                               
not because females  were inferior but because  people with power                                                               
believed they were.  The government created laws  to give females                                                               
a chance to play; however, this  bill proposes to take those away                                                               
for many Alaskan students. The  transgender woman at Pennsylvania                                                               
State University  was required to be  on estrogen for at  least a                                                               
year  to  compete  on  the   women's  team,  which  affected  her                                                               
performance levels.                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
12:18:22 PM                                                                                                                   
ROBIN  RHOADS, representing  self, Juneau,  Alaska, testified  in                                                               
opposition to  SB 140.  She has  a background  in education  as a                                                               
biologist. She argued that SB  140's definition of biological sex                                                               
is inaccurate, logistically  indefensible, and unenforceable. She                                                               
rebuffed  previous  testimony  that claimed,  "gene  is  gender,"                                                               
citing research that linked  exposure to diethylstilbestrol (DES)                                                               
to   gene   development   defects  in   the   womb.   Legislation                                                               
incorporating  the term  "biological sex"  will face  ethical and                                                               
logistical issues  when assigning and verifying  "biological sex"                                                               
metrics.  In doing  so, it  will set  an abhorrent  precedent for                                                               
privacy violations and government  access to medical records. She                                                               
concluded   her  testimony   saying  this   bill  is   rooted  in                                                               
discrimination and scientifically inaccurate.                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
12:21:06 PM                                                                                                                   
ELLIE HOGENSON,  representing self, Fairbanks,  Alaska, testified                                                               
in  opposition  to  SB  140,  stating she  is  the  mother  of  a                                                               
beautiful  transgender daughter.  This is  a bill  looking for  a                                                               
problem. This bill would further  stigmatize students who already                                                               
face  barriers and  hurdles in  life. Transgender  children, like                                                               
all children,  should be cherished, not  ostracized. Athletics is                                                               
a way  for children to find  joy in school, and  the state should                                                               
not  exclude  anybody from  this  opportunity.  She is  concerned                                                               
about the enforcement  of this creepy bill and  its mental health                                                               
effects  on trans  girls.  She  is a  lifelong  Alaskan, and  the                                                               
values of Alaskans are community  and individuality. SB 140 is in                                                               
direct opposition to these values.                                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
12:22:26 PM                                                                                                                   
SARAH MURTADA,  representing self,  Palmer, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition to  SB 140, stating  she played sports  throughout her                                                               
academic career.  She extolled the  benefits of athletics  and is                                                               
now finishing  her last semester  of law school using  the skills                                                               
learned  from  participating  in  sports. She  said  that  taking                                                               
sports from  transgender children  will isolate them  and prevent                                                               
them  from learning  valuable  skills. It  also  takes away  from                                                               
cisgender  students   who  deserve  and  want   to  play  against                                                               
classmates. No data demonstrate  trans students negatively impact                                                               
participation in school sports.  However, data shows the negative                                                               
impact of preventing trans students  from participating in sports                                                               
for transgender and non-transgender youth.  As a law student, she                                                               
has  spent  the  last  three   years  learning  about  individual                                                               
sovereignty,  civil  rights,  and constitutional  rights  against                                                               
government   inclusion.  SB   140   is  at   variance  with   the                                                               
Constitution   and  these   rights.  A   coordinated  attack   on                                                               
transgender  youth in  sports has  been taking  place nationwide.                                                               
She urged  committee members  to prevent  Lower 48  politics from                                                               
affecting Alaskans. Alaskans are better than this.                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
12:24:00 PM                                                                                                                   
ARLEIGH   HITCHCOCK,   representing  self,   Fairbanks,   Alaska,                                                               
testified in opposition  to SB 140, stating it is  hard enough to                                                               
be a child  in this world without a bill  that isolates, vanishes                                                               
and kills children.                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
MX. HITCHCOCK uses the pronouns "they and them," stating:                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
-  Committee members  should focus  on bills  benefitting schools                                                               
and  children  in  Alaska,  not   on  creepy  bills  focusing  on                                                               
children's genitalia.                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
-  Being visibly  gender-nonconforming  resulted  in being  badly                                                               
bullied throughout school. Loving  parents explained bullies hate                                                               
some part of themselves, and as  a result, they torment those who                                                               
love themselves.                                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
-  If  Senator   Hughes  and  the  supporters  of   SB  140  hate                                                               
themselves,  they should  seek therapy  to  resolve their  issues                                                               
rather   than  taking   their   frustration   out  on   children.                                                               
Transgender children need to feel  safe and loved, and deserve to                                                               
participate in sports.                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
- Soccer  and lacrosse  were outlets to  get away  from bullying,                                                               
were places to  enjoy being a child, and were,  for a fact, life-                                                               
saving.  It  is  upsetting  to think  that  transgender  student-                                                               
athletes  will lose  this valuable  survival  mechanism and  that                                                               
they may not  survive without it. She gave a  big thanks to those                                                               
calling in  to oppose  SB 140  and for getting  the facts  on the                                                               
record.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
12:26:17 PM                                                                                                                   
JESSICA  GREENE, representing  self,  Anchorage, Alaska,  offered                                                               
testimony in  opposition to SB 140  as a person who  loves sports                                                               
and uses the pronouns "they and them."                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
MX. GREENE was picked early for  teams on the playground, a solid                                                               
player, the  only "assigned  female at  birth" athlete  who could                                                               
play  alongside  "assigned male  at  birth"  peers as  a  capable                                                               
equal. Over  time, the school district's  discriminatory policies                                                               
made   playing  alongside   "assigned   male   at  birth"   peers                                                               
impossible.                                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
MX. GREENE continued to play  sports but suffered, feeling out of                                                               
place and longing  to play alongside peers.  Being separated from                                                               
them was mentally distressing, dispiriting, and life-altering.                                                                  
                                                                                                                                
MX.  GREENE said  there are  many  reasons to  oppose this  bill,                                                               
including:                                                                                                                      
- psychological harm to transgender youth,                                                                                      
- increased rates of suicide,                                                                                                   
- violation of basic privacy rights,                                                                                            
- lack of scientific definitions, and                                                                                           
- it targets students of color.                                                                                                 
These are not arguable points.  These are facts supported by law,                                                               
science, and the  personal experiences of trans  youth. For these                                                               
reasons she urged the committee not to pass SB 140.                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
12:29:06 PM                                                                                                                   
KENDAL  KRUSE, representing  self, Palmer,  Alaska, testified  in                                                               
support  of  SB  140  as  a  mother  of  sons  and  daughters,  a                                                               
Christian, and  a former collegiate athlete.  She played multiple                                                               
sports year-round  during childhood and, having  athletic skills,                                                               
was able to  walk onto the women's college  lacrosse team, having                                                               
never  played. She  could do  this because  she did  not have  to                                                               
compete  against  male players.  Men's  and  women's sports  were                                                               
separate. She acknowledged that  children need support, help, and                                                               
love  across  the  board.  This bill  is  about  a  biology-based                                                               
reality that  acknowledges the  physical differences  between the                                                               
sexes.  It  is a  fact  that  males  have  a physical  edge  over                                                               
females, so women's  teams should reserve their  spots for female                                                               
competitors.  She   emphasized  the  alternative   is  collective                                                               
sports,  where all  play together.  If that  were to  happen, she                                                               
questioned  how  many females,  trans  females,  and trans  males                                                               
would make  the cut. She stated  that as a health  care provider,                                                               
she knows  that individuals  are born  with certain  profiles and                                                               
different normal levels for boys and  girls. A war on this aspect                                                               
of biology  translates into  a war  on the  safety of  girls. She                                                               
illustrated the  point, citing a  story about a male  MMA fighter                                                               
who permanently damaged his opponent's  skull. She will not allow                                                               
her daughters to  participate in coed sports where  they could be                                                               
injured, nor  will they  enter a  locker room  used by  males. An                                                               
easy way to verify sex is by looking at birth certificates.                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
12:32:20 PM                                                                                                                   
GRETCHEN GORDON, representing  self, Fairbanks, Alaska, testified                                                               
in opposition  to SB 140.  She stated  that this bill  is another                                                               
directive   from  the   Christian  nationalists,   America  First                                                               
Policies   Institute  (AFPI),   and  Turning   Point  USA   in  a                                                               
coordinated effort to  rid the country of all that  is not white,                                                               
straight, and  Christian. Transgender  people make up  .6 percent                                                               
of the  entire population. SB  140 targets a population  so small                                                               
it appears the  bill is looking for a problem  where none exists,                                                               
relying  on subjective  claims from  alleged  experts. This  bill                                                               
cherry-picks science so  old that it has since  been refuted many                                                               
times over.  SB 140 is  blatantly discriminatory and  it violates                                                               
Title  IX and  the  US  Constitution's right  to  privacy. It  is                                                               
designed   to  oppress   and  exclude   transgender  girls   from                                                               
participating in  their school  community and  sports, preventing                                                               
them from  reaping the rewards  of team participation.  This bill                                                               
meets the  sponsor's need to  erase transgender youth, and  in so                                                               
doing, trans youth suffer humiliation  and traumatization. SB 140                                                               
attempts to enjoin  Alaska with other states,  emboldened by hate                                                               
and  misunderstandings about  who trans  Alaskans are.  Lawmakers                                                               
claim to  want to keep  Alaskan youth  safe and sports  for girls                                                               
fair;  this  is a  lie.  She  said  all transgender  and  gender-                                                               
expansive youth should  never allow themselves to  think they are                                                               
anything other than  amazing, valid, and a valuable  part of this                                                               
world. People who belittle,  dehumanize, and discriminate against                                                               
transgender  people   operate  out   of  fear,   hate,  misguided                                                               
religious beliefs,  and insecurity. Ignorant people  will fail in                                                               
their  discriminatory   goals  for   these  reasons.   She  urged                                                               
committee members  not to advance  SB 140. If the  bill advances,                                                               
understand  that   these  students  are  active,   stronger  than                                                               
imaginable,  and  will  be  voting soon,  as  will  their  peers,                                                               
teachers, and parents.                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
12:35:17 PM                                                                                                                   
SUMMER ANDERSEN, representing self,  Haines, Alaska, testified in                                                               
opposition to  SB 140 on  moral and  practical grounds. She  is a                                                               
feminist  and a  volunteer  in youth  sports.  This bill  creates                                                               
barriers  that  prevent  children from  participating  in  public                                                               
school  activities. The  practical application  of combining  sex                                                               
and  gender  in minors  is  a  minefield. Creating  policies  and                                                               
procedures that  probe into minors' private  and intimate details                                                               
is  next   to  impossible  and   incompatible  with   the  Alaska                                                               
Constitutional right to privacy. The  unwritten text of SB 140 is                                                               
to exclude transgender  people; however, this bill  is harmful to                                                               
all children. The bill is impractical  and will open the state to                                                               
litigation. She echoed previous  testimony, stating listen to the                                                               
kids, they  are our  future and they  overwhelmingly do  not want                                                               
this.  She echoed  previous testimony,  stating  the barriers  in                                                               
women's  sports  are  funding, media  recognition,  and  material                                                               
worth, not trans-athletes.                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
12:37:46 PM                                                                                                                   
MARY SZATKOWSKI, representing  self, Fairbanks, Alaska, testified                                                               
in  opposition  to  SB  140,   stating  this  bill  will  prevent                                                               
transgender  youth  from  playing  on a  team  aligned  to  their                                                               
gender. Denying students' gender affirmation  is a form of mental                                                               
abuse  that  would  prevent trans  youth  from  participating  in                                                               
sports,  increasing the  stress on  students who  are already  at                                                               
risk  for poor  mental health  and academic  performance. Studies                                                               
show that transgender  students who are welcomed  and affirmed in                                                               
all aspects  of their  lives have lower  rates of  depression and                                                               
suicidal thoughts;  it is a  lifeline to  a group three  times as                                                               
likely to  contemplate suicide as  their classmates.  Trans youth                                                               
involved in  school sports perform  better academically  and have                                                               
lower rates of  depressive symptoms than those  not involved. The                                                               
justification for this  bill is the protection  of girls' sports,                                                               
per  the sponsor  statement. She  questioned this  justification,                                                               
citing  data  indicating  that  participation  in  girls'  sports                                                               
decreased in states with  transgender-exclusive policies over the                                                               
last ten  years. Conversely, participation remained  unchanged or                                                               
increased   in   states  with   transgender-inclusive   policies.                                                               
Students,  both  trans  and  cisgender,  are  uncomfortable  with                                                               
questions  about  their  bodies,   and  such  inquiries  lead  to                                                               
increased bullying for both trans  and cisgender students. SB 140                                                               
harms the experience  of organized sports for  all Alaskan youth.                                                               
She participated  in youth athletics  for ten years  and competed                                                               
at  the  collegiate  level. This  formative  experience  fostered                                                               
lifelong friendships,  hobbies, and education. No  student should                                                               
be  denied this  opportunity.  She noted  that competing  against                                                               
transgender athletes  would not  have diminished  her experience;                                                               
she would  have had  fun, done  well, and  been recruited  to the                                                               
college team. One point of sports  is rising to the challenge and                                                               
improving, no matter  the competition. She said  trans youth have                                                               
been  competing  in sports  for  decades.  She wondered  why  the                                                               
sponsor  suddenly presented  this  bill  along with  hypothetical                                                               
situations.  Trans women  are  women.  Supporting women's  sports                                                               
includes supporting trans women in women's sports.                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
12:40:07 PM                                                                                                                   
REBECCA   CULLENBERG,   representing   self,   Wasilla,   Alaska,                                                               
testified  in  support  of SB  140,  stating  biological  females                                                               
should not be  discriminated against in women's  sports. She said                                                               
do not  let emotions  and feelings influence  the senate  vote on                                                               
this  bill  and to  vote  based  on  fact. Biological  males  are                                                               
different than  biological females,  and females should  not have                                                               
to compete with males in girls'  sports. This sums up SB 140. She                                                               
said this bill is not  about disliking the transgender community,                                                               
noting she has dear friends who have made that choice.                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
12:41:20 PM                                                                                                                   
CHRISTY MARVIN,  representing self, Palmer, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
support of  SB 140, the Even  Playing Act. She is  a local, elite                                                               
women's  athlete,  middle school  running  coach,  and mother  of                                                               
three  boys. She  expressed her  belief that  girls deserve  fair                                                               
competition in  sports. Transgender  girls should not  be allowed                                                               
to compete against  cisgender girls. The basis  for this argument                                                               
is  human  biology. There  is  growing  and ample  evidence  that                                                               
testosterone  provides  a  significant performance  advantage  in                                                               
sports, enough so  that testosterone is on  the banned substances                                                               
list  of  anti-doping  agencies  worldwide.  In  a  recent  study                                                               
published  in   the  European  Journal  of   Applied  Physiology,                                                               
biologic females have,  on average, 30 to 60  percent less muscle                                                               
mass  and strength  compared to  biologic  males. Biologic  males                                                               
have  a  larger  oxygen-carrying   capacity  to  fuel  those  big                                                               
muscles. A woman's VO2 max (the  maximum rate of oxygen a body is                                                               
able to  use during exercise) is  20 percent lower than  a man's.                                                               
Allyson Felix  is the most  decorated woman athlete in  track and                                                               
field in history.  She won six Olympic gold  medals; however, her                                                               
lifetime personal best  in the 400-meter dash would  not even put                                                               
her on  the podium  in high school  boys' championship  races. If                                                               
the  world's fastest  women cannot  compete  against high  school                                                               
boys, average cisgender high school  girls should not be expected                                                               
to do  so. Cisgender females  often reach their biologic  peak by                                                               
the 8th  grade. However,  biologic males  continue to  improve at                                                               
drastic  rates  through  middle  and  high  school  due  to  male                                                               
puberty. Critics  argue that transgender students  are subject to                                                               
bullying and high  rates of suicide. The  argument is transgender                                                               
girls should be allowed to compete  in the girls' category due to                                                               
this  discrimination.  While this  is  certainly  a problem,  the                                                               
solution is not to destroy  the level playing field for cisgender                                                               
females.  Women have  worked long  and hard  for a  place in  the                                                               
world of sports. Allowing transgender  females, with their clear-                                                               
cut biologic  performance advantages,  to compete in  the women's                                                               
division  takes   away  the   opportunity  for   excellence  from                                                               
cisgender females.  Having biologic  males compete in  the female                                                               
division renders the  gender divide in the  sport meaningless. If                                                               
this  is   allowed,  girls'  sports   will  soon   be  eliminated                                                               
altogether. Fight  for every little  girl who aspires to  be more                                                               
than she is today. She urged  committee members to give girls the                                                               
same opportunities she had.                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
12:44:40 PM                                                                                                                   
PHILLIP MOSER,  representing self,  Juneau, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition  to  SB  140,  stating  this  bill  is  an  attack  on                                                               
transgender   children,  adults,   and   people  nationwide.   He                                                               
addressed several points the bill supporters brought up:                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
- Robbing women  of scholarships. He asked what  work the sponsor                                                               
of this bill  is doing to increase state  scholarships in Alaska,                                                               
noting a huge  portion of state scholarships were  lost when they                                                               
were drained  into the [Constitutional  Budget Reserve  Fund last                                                               
year].                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
- Competing  against the opposite  sex. He participated  in track                                                               
and field and  football. Sports is about  building character, not                                                               
about  winning.  He  questioned  whether body  size  is  a  valid                                                               
consideration in this discussion. He  was not the biggest nor the                                                               
fastest  and competed  against students  of  varying sizes.  Body                                                               
size should not be the basis for exclusion.                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
-  Student  preferences.  Whether   an  athlete  is  straight  or                                                               
transgender,  students prefer  inclusivity across  the state  and                                                               
nation.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
MR. MOSER said that backers of SB 140 used similar arguments:                                                                   
- to exclude LGBTQ teachers from schools,                                                                                       
- in "bathroom bills,"                                                                                                          
- to rile the public,                                                                                                           
- to attack black, indigenous people of color (BIPOC), and                                                                      
- to attack transgender students.                                                                                               
He said, "An attack on one of us is an attack on all of us."                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
12:48:03 PM                                                                                                                   
SALLY  POLLEN, representing  self, Palmer,  Alaska, testified  in                                                               
support of  SB 140  because girls  should be  able to  compete in                                                               
sports against  other girls. She has  nothing against transgender                                                               
youth  and suggests  they organize  and  have competitions  among                                                               
themselves. If this  bill fails to pass, it  amounts to legalized                                                               
bullying. She  supports making  a legal,  level playing  field in                                                               
girls' sports. She emphasized that  there is a difference between                                                               
biological boys and biological girls.                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
12:50:27 PM                                                                                                                   
RAYMOND LEE,  representing self,  Soldotna, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition   to  SB   140,  stating   the   bill  is   needlessly                                                               
discriminatory.  He  is  a  volunteer  martial  arts  instructor.                                                               
Doctors  worldwide   assert  that  transgender  people   need  to                                                               
transition,  and   those  under  16  may   only  receive  hormone                                                               
blockers, and  those under 13  may not receive  anything. Hormone                                                               
blockers  pause the  effects of  puberty  so that  the child  may                                                               
mentally mature  and gain  a clearer  sense of  self. Researchers                                                               
and  doctors  all advise  this,  and  to  ignore this  advice  is                                                               
inexcusable. The  main complaint about  trans youth in  sports is                                                               
that  they   outperform  cisgender   youth.  He   questioned  why                                                               
supporters  of this  type  of legislation  also  refuse to  allow                                                               
trans youth  to have hormone  blockers. Blockers would  pause the                                                               
exaggerated  effects of  puberty  and, in  the supporters'  view,                                                               
make  competition   more  equal.  Transgender  students   do  not                                                               
outperform in  school sports.  If they  had an  unfair advantage,                                                               
everyone  would hear  about it  regularly. All  recent interviews                                                               
with  coaches and  teachers report  that most  transgender youths                                                               
hold  an average  performance record  regardless of  which gender                                                               
group  placed.  He  trained  plenty  of  women  who  consistently                                                               
outperformed male students through  blackbelt and beyond, despite                                                               
physical differences. He  does not suppose it; he  sees it. These                                                               
female students make male students  afraid to spar. Proponents of                                                               
this bill  bring up  bone density; however,  the reality  is that                                                               
hormone  therapy  drastically  changes  the  body.  Even  without                                                               
hormone  therapy,  biological   variation  already  exists  among                                                               
cisgender  people. The  biological variation  is more  obvious in                                                               
intersex people;  as an aside,  he asked how intersex  people fit                                                               
into this bill. In the  Olympics, transgender athletes are forced                                                               
to  stop hormone  therapy, but  intersex athletes  are forced  to                                                               
start  hormone therapy.  Supposedly, this  makes the  competition                                                               
fair.  He wondered  for whom  it is  fair. This  is hypocritical,                                                               
inhumane,  and egregiously  flawed.  Transgender athletes  should                                                               
not have to  be more like "everyone else" to  qualify for sports.                                                               
Dictating body types  is not the business  of sports. Celebrating                                                               
abilities and accomplishments is the  business of sports with the                                                               
space  to learn  perseverance, discipline,  and health.  Claiming                                                               
major differences should  not be celebrated in sports  is akin to                                                               
banning Michael Phelps from competition  because he produces half                                                               
as  much lactic  acid as  the average  person, has  an abnormally                                                               
large wingspan, and is double-jointed.  The "Michael Phelpses" of                                                               
the world are  not banned, making it more evident  that this bill                                                               
is not actually about physical advantages.                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
12:52:59 PM                                                                                                                   
BROOK BEVERIDGE, representing  self, Anchorage, Alaska, testified                                                               
in opposition  to SB 140.  She stated that transgender  women are                                                               
women. Transgender and gender nonconforming  youth forced to play                                                               
on  teams  of  their  assigned gender  is  traumatic.  This  bill                                                               
perpetuates  the falsehood  that gender  only includes  cisgender                                                               
men and  cisgender women. This  bill allows coaches  and teachers                                                               
to  police  whether  a  student  is  transgender  or  not,  which                                                               
violates  medical privacy  laws,  professional expectations,  and                                                               
nondiscrimination   laws.   Denying  transgender   students   the                                                               
opportunity to participate in sports  would likely increase their                                                               
risk for  mental health  issues and suicide,  and it  denies them                                                               
the benefits  of participation. There is  no age-limit scientific                                                               
data to support fairness concerns  regarding the participation of                                                               
transgender   and   gender-nonconforming  athletes.   This   bill                                                               
perpetuates  narrow-minded stereotypes  of  gender and  identity.                                                               
Ultimately,   this  is   just  a   bill   targeting  an   already                                                               
marginalized  group of  children  who elected  officials have  an                                                               
obligation to protect.  This bill is hurtful  and unnecessary. SB
140  is an  attack on  the LGBTQ+  community under  the guise  of                                                               
fairness.   She   urged   the   committee   to   protect   gender                                                               
nonconforming and transgender children by opposing SB 140.                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
12:55:34 PM                                                                                                                   
BRIDGET MARYOTT,  representing self, Homer, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition  to   SB  140   as  a   mother  concerned   about  the                                                               
implications the  bill will  have on the  safety of  children. SB
140 violates basic privacy rights  and would require teachers and                                                               
coaches  to verify  the sex  of female  athletes, transgender  or                                                               
not.  This imposes  the threat  of intrusive  and burdensome  sex                                                               
verification on all women and  girls that is impossible to square                                                               
with the Alaska  Constitution. Alaska schools are  not legally or                                                               
ethically  authorized to  verify a  child's biological  sex under                                                               
medical privacy and nondiscrimination  laws. She said she focused                                                               
her testimony on legal issues  because it is more persuasive, but                                                               
the real  focus of this  bill is children's lives.  She expressed                                                               
hope  that  the committee  understands  the  suffering this  bill                                                               
could cause.                                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
12:57:02 PM                                                                                                                   
KASEY CASORT, representing self,  Fairbanks, Alaska, testified in                                                               
opposition to  SB 140, because  transgender girls are  girls. All                                                               
children  deserve  to play,  be  supported,  loved in  all  their                                                               
identities,  and  be  mentored  by  adults  they  trust.  Tasking                                                               
coaches   and  teachers   with  determining   children's  genders                                                               
violates  every student's  basic  right to  privacy  and that  is                                                               
unacceptable. Targeting  a relatively small group  of children is                                                               
nothing  but  bullying,   and  there  is  no   excuse  for  using                                                               
legislative  positions   of  power   to  do  it.   She  expressed                                                               
frustration that  the committee and  the bill sponsor  decided to                                                               
spend their limited time and  resources attacking children rather                                                               
than addressing real issues in  sports, schools, and other issues                                                               
facing Alaska.  She shared a  joyful experience that came  from a                                                               
"Queer in  Alaska" themed tea party.  She hopes that one  day all                                                               
committee members  will enjoy  a sense  of belonging  like people                                                               
felt at  the tea  party. She  urged members  not to  hold another                                                               
hearing  on SB  140; she  does not  want to  spend any  more time                                                               
listening to transphobia.                                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
12:59:27 PM                                                                                                                   
VERONICA HOWARD, representing  self, Anchorage, Alaska, testified                                                               
in  opposition  to  SB  140 as  a  scientist,  an  intersectional                                                               
feminist, and a parent of a trans child.                                                                                        
                                                                                                                                
MX. HOWARD uses the pronouns "they  and them," and as a scientist                                                               
and psychologist, tries  to understand most things  with a simple                                                               
question:  "What  is  the  function?"   Using  this  question  to                                                               
understand SB 140, one might ask:                                                                                               
- why this bill is needed,                                                                                                      
- who this bill helps and harms,                                                                                                
- who this bill is sponsored by and their intentions, and                                                                       
- how this bill will be accomplished if passed.                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
MX.  HOWARD   asked  how  the  spectrum   of  natural  biological                                                               
variability is  accounted for  if the  function of  SB 140  is to                                                               
ensure parity  or equity between  players. Multiple  times today,                                                               
testifiers  listed  average  or simple  differences  between  the                                                               
biological  male  and  biological  female,  but  biology  is  not                                                               
simple.  Robin  Rhoads testified  earlier  today  that these  are                                                               
false dichotomy  arguments. These  are misrepresentations  of the                                                               
data  on physical  differences between  men and  women, and  they                                                               
just do not fit here.                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
MX. HOWARD  said if the function  of SB 140 is  to protect female                                                               
athletes' ability to access  educational opportunities, maybe the                                                               
problem is affordable higher education.  The committee should pay                                                               
attention  to this  complaint; it  was reiterated  multiple times                                                               
today. A  solution to this  problem is  focusing on ways  to make                                                               
higher education affordable.                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
MX.  HOWARD said  SB 140  would disproportionately  impact gender                                                               
nonconforming  youth who  are  already far  more  likely to  have                                                               
adverse experiences, like:                                                                                                      
- bullying,                                                                                                                     
- family alienation,                                                                                                            
- homelessness,                                                                                                                 
- mental health issues, and                                                                                                     
- suicidal ideation, 10 to 15 times higher than cisgender peers.                                                                
The scrutiny to enforce this  bill is impractical and will expose                                                               
the state to  harm. Do not pass a bill  designed for unnecessary,                                                               
intrusive oversight  over children's  bodies. SB 140  is hateful,                                                               
impractical, and contrary to the spirit of Alaska.                                                                              
                                                                                                                                
1:02:30 PM                                                                                                                    
GAIL   LIMBAUGH-MOORE,  representing   self,  Soldotna,   Alaska,                                                               
testified in  support of  SB 140, stating  Title IX  passed after                                                               
she  was out  of  school. She  loves sports  and  wonders if  her                                                               
life's course would have been  different had she played. Twice in                                                               
school, girls  were invited to  play field hockey,  baseball, and                                                               
powder puff sports  over a two-year period. Girls only  had a few                                                               
opportunities to  participate. She was discriminated  against and                                                               
denied  the opportunity  to participate  because she  was female.                                                               
However, she  would not  have welcomed playing  on a  men's team;                                                               
likewise,  she  would not  have  welcomed  males competing  on  a                                                               
women's team. The place for mixed-sex sports is a coed team.                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
1:04:37 PM                                                                                                                    
TAYLOR  MORGAN, representing  self, Fairbanks,  Alaska, testified                                                               
in opposition  to SB 140,  stating she was  the only girl  on her                                                               
high  school  coed wrestling  team  in  the 2010s.  She  competed                                                               
against boys and girls, but  mostly boys, quite successfully. The                                                               
matches  were  not  unfair  but  transferring  adult  transphobic                                                               
issues onto trans  kids is. Suicide is a public  health crisis in                                                               
Alaska; this  bill reinforces the  narrative that the  state does                                                               
not take this problem seriously.                                                                                                
                                                                                                                                
1:06:04 PM                                                                                                                    
REBECCA DEBUSK,  representing self, Palmer, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
support of SB 140, stating  that it protects biological girls and                                                               
women in  sports. It will preserve  the gains won in  Title IX in                                                               
the  1970s   and  protect   biological  females   against  unfair                                                               
competition with  biological males.  God created male  and female                                                               
and provided  each with unique  qualities. Males are  stronger by                                                               
design, giving them  an advantage over females  when competing in                                                               
sports.  They  would  not  need   hormone  blockers  or  estrogen                                                               
therapy, as  one testifier suggested, if  transgender girls lived                                                               
the  life God  gave  them. She  expressed her  belief  that if  a                                                               
biological male  wants to  compete in  sports, he  should compete                                                               
against other  biological males,  regardless of  gender identity.                                                               
He should not  have an unfair advantage  over biological females.                                                               
One  caller said  that sports  are not  about winning  or losing.                                                               
However,  it is  about a  biological female  winning or  losing a                                                               
scholarship or  self-confidence due to the  unfair advantage that                                                               
biological  males have  over biological  females. Several  social                                                               
workers,  counselors, ministers,  and minister's  wives advocated                                                               
for   transgender   children   during   this   call,   which   is                                                               
heartbreaking.  They should  speak to  the God-given  purpose for                                                               
these  children,  who are  created  in  his  image. God  was  not                                                               
confused when  he created them  as male  or female, and  he loves                                                               
them. Once  children know that  God loves them and  created them,                                                               
they will no  longer be confused and will live  a peaceable life,                                                               
knowing they  have a  loving heavenly father  with a  purpose for                                                               
them. She expressed her belief  that SB 140 does not discriminate                                                               
against  trans people,  and it  supports  biological females  and                                                               
their right  to compete on a  level plain. As pointed  out during                                                               
testimony,  a male  could not  see gains  or win  records, so  he                                                               
switched gender  to compete on the  women's swim team. He  is now                                                               
shattering  female  records. This  is  an  indication as  to  the                                                               
advantage males  have over females.  She urged the  committee not                                                               
to  punish  females  by  giving  into  an  agenda  that  promotes                                                               
confusion  in children.  Males need  to know  they are  males and                                                               
females need  to know they  are females; God created  people this                                                               
way for a specific purpose.                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
1:08:48 PM                                                                                                                    
CEDAR POLTA,  representing self, Anchorage, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition to SB 140. She  said athletics taught her many skills,                                                               
including how  to lose gracefully. The  spirit of Title IX  is to                                                               
create more  pathways to athletics  and other  opportunities, not                                                               
to cordon  athletics off and  safeguard who gets  to participate.                                                               
Title  IX says  no person  shall  be excluded;  this means  trans                                                               
people  and  trans women  are  equally  deserving of  Title  IX's                                                               
protection as  other women. Trans  women are women. She  lived in                                                               
Palmer, Senator Hughes' district, for  two years. She came out to                                                               
her closest friends as transgender  and nonbinary while living in                                                               
Palmer  in 2016.  She  was  28 years  of  age,  living alone  and                                                               
figuring things out  in a community new to her.  Living in Palmer                                                               
as  a trans  person was  not a  comfortable experience.  Bathroom                                                               
bills were prolific at that  time. People were deliberating about                                                               
where  she  should be  allowed  to  pee. Those  individuals  most                                                               
uncomfortable with trans  existence did not mince  their words or                                                               
hide  their sentiments.  She was  informed directly,  repeatedly,                                                               
and emphatically how little she  belonged. As an adult, she coped                                                               
but  struggled to  feel  safe  in a  state  government job  where                                                               
coworkers regularly debated her rights.  She stayed in the closet                                                               
at work until  she left the valley. She loves  the valley, but it                                                               
is hard  to think about  moving back because  it is hard  to feel                                                               
welcome there.  Another transphobic  bill is  under consideration                                                               
today. SB 140 is aimed at  telling all youth that they will never                                                               
be recognized for  anything but their genitalia.  Trans youth are                                                               
excessively  bullied  and  often   pushed  into  suicide.  It  is                                                               
heartbreaking to think of trans  youth in the valley terrified to                                                               
be who they  are. She asked why the legislature  is considering a                                                               
bill that  makes it harder  for trans  youth to exist,  live, and                                                               
enjoy team camaraderie  like their peers do. She  asked what this                                                               
bill accomplishes  by defining children  by their genitalia  in a                                                               
state with the highest rate of  child sexual abuse in the nation.                                                               
Rebutting  the   testifier  who  maintained   birth  certificates                                                               
provide adequate proof  of sex, she has a  birth certificate that                                                               
indicates she is nonbinary. At  least five states currently allow                                                               
birth certificates  to list sex  as nonbinary. Regardless  of its                                                               
justification,  this  bill is  a  far  overreach that  will  harm                                                               
children,  teenagers,  and  college  students,  adding  to  their                                                               
trauma and  creating additional obstacles to  overcome. She asked                                                               
how SB  140 helps anyone  when it  is wrong, poorly  thought out,                                                               
and should not advance.                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
1:11:11 PM                                                                                                                    
BERT HOUGHTALING, representing self,  Big Lake, Alaska, testified                                                               
in support of SB 140, stating  he identifies as a human being. He                                                               
is biologically a male and has  a daughter that is biologically a                                                               
female,   according   to   science.   He   heard   more   racist,                                                               
discriminatory, hate-filled  speech today than he  has ever heard                                                               
in another single  setting. The LGBTQ trans  community of Alaska,                                                               
who  have  rallied  against   this  bill,  discriminates  against                                                               
biological  females.   This  community  argues  that   males  are                                                               
biologically equal  to females. In either  direction, females are                                                               
uniquely different  than males. Biological males  need to compete                                                               
against other  biological males,  and biological females  need to                                                               
compete against  biological females.  Only 1.7  percent of  the 7                                                               
billion plus people in the  world identify as intersex; of these,                                                               
only  .2 percent  have body  parts that  fall outside  the strict                                                               
male/female binary. He  said SB 140 is not a  transgender bill or                                                               
intersex bill.  He said this bill  ensures discrimination against                                                               
girls  and women  does not  occur,  explaining it  is unfair  and                                                               
unfortunate  that  females  compete against  males  for  athletic                                                               
scholarships.                                                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
1:14:07 PM                                                                                                                    
JULIA  DENOTO, representing  self, Denali,  Alaska, testified  in                                                               
opposition to  SB 140, stating  this bill is about  fairness, and                                                               
it is fair to let trans  kids play sports. Women's sports include                                                               
trans  women. Girls'  sports include  trans  girls because  trans                                                               
girls  are girls.  People like  Senator Hughes,  who claim  to be                                                               
fine with trans people, ultimately are  not fine when it comes to                                                               
sports. Trans people  are not divisible, allowed to  exist in one                                                               
place but not another. People  who claim to support trans people,                                                               
must  support   them  everywhere.   The  supposed   experts  that                                                               
testified in  committee last week  are just making  a hate-filled                                                               
circuit nationwide. It  was hard to watch and a  joke. She joined                                                               
the chorus  of Alaskans  saying SB  140 is  proposing to  solve a                                                               
problem that does not exist. This  bill would put all children at                                                               
risk   of   traumatizing,   horrible  underpants   checks,   both                                                               
transgender and  cisgender kids.  She asked  how well  an athlete                                                               
must  perform  before  being accused  of  being  transgender  and                                                               
required to submit  to an underpants check. She  opined that out-                                                               
of-state  influencers  are  attempting   to  use  this  bill  and                                                               
Alaskans for a purpose other than sports.                                                                                       
                                                                                                                                
1:15:49 PM                                                                                                                    
MELISSA SYPHUS,  representing self, Anchorage,  Alaska, testified                                                               
in  opposition to  SB 140,  stating the  aim of  this bill  is to                                                               
slowly exclude  transgender people from participating  in sports.                                                               
The claims of inherent physical  advantages made by proponents of                                                               
this bill  are baseless  and rooted  in transphobia.  Enacting SB
140 will  violate transgender and gender  nonconforming students'                                                               
right to  privacy and further  stigmatize transgender  teens from                                                               
their peers. If Alaskans care  about trans kids in the community,                                                               
laws  should support  and include  them, not  separate them  from                                                               
public life.  She urged  committee members to  oppose SB  140 and                                                               
allow trans youths to succeed in sports among their peers.                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
1:16:59 PM                                                                                                                    
DAVID NEES,  representing self,  Anchorage, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
support of SB  140, stating he coached 7th to  12th grades for 75                                                               
seasons  in Anchorage.  Each sport  had divisions  for males  and                                                               
females.  When   he  went   to  college,   the  number   of  male                                                               
opportunities  to  participate in  sports  was  greater than  for                                                               
females. Title  IX changed this,  requiring sex equity  in sports                                                               
opportunities.  SB 140  complies  with the  Title IX  stipulation                                                               
that schools  receiving federal funds  must ensure sex  equity in                                                               
sports opportunities. The  Alaska [School Activities Association]                                                               
requires a medical physical examination  to participate in school                                                               
sports. If a student wants to  participate in a school sport, the                                                               
Alaska  Constitution  does  not  protect that  student  from  the                                                               
physical exam requirement. The medical  physical does not require                                                               
students  to indicate  their  sport(s). He  said  coaches do  not                                                               
conduct medical  physical exams, and  noted that he is  neither a                                                               
doctor  nor  nurse  practitioner,  is not  qualified  to  perform                                                               
medical  physicals,  and never  had  to  do  a "turn  and  cough"                                                               
testicular exam on any players.  The current inequality in sports                                                               
exists because people  born with XY chromosomes  are permitted to                                                               
compete  with  those  born  with XX  chromosomes.  He  urged  the                                                               
committee to keep the competition fair for girls.                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
1:19:17 PM                                                                                                                    
SUZY  CROSBY, representing  self, Wasilla,  Alaska, testified  in                                                               
support of  SB 140, stating  this bill is not  about transphobia.                                                               
People are welcome to make choices  on how they identify and live                                                               
their  lives  accordingly.  However,  when  transgender  athletes                                                               
compete against  biological women,  women's sports are  no longer                                                               
women's sports.  The sport  becomes a  unisex athletic  event. SB
140 protects the opportunity of  biological girls to compete on a                                                               
level playing field against other  girls. In 1972, Title IX paved                                                               
the way  for women to compete  and excel in sports  for the first                                                               
time in  American history.  The inroads for  women are  undone by                                                               
allowing trans-identifying, biological  males to compete, robbing                                                               
women of Title IX's opportunities.  Some competitive events, like                                                               
debate teams, are coed because  there is no inherent advantage to                                                               
having or  lacking either gender's  size, strength,  or hormones.                                                               
Even  the Iditarod,  like  most  other dog  races,  has just  one                                                               
division, recognizing that the true  athletes in the race are the                                                               
dogs themselves.  In the middle  of the  pack of any  coed sport,                                                               
some women  will beat some men.  She could have proven  the point                                                               
racing  the giant  slalom  or downhill  when  she routinely  beat                                                               
about 2/3 of the men she  raced. However, at the top three places                                                               
in almost any competitive sport, there  is a clear pattern of top                                                               
men  finishers ahead  of  the top  three  women. In  competitions                                                               
where  stature,  strength,  stamina,   and  speed  determine  the                                                               
winner, post-pubertal, biological males  have an indisputable and                                                               
well-documented   advantage  over   their  female   counterparts.                                                               
Separate  men's  and women's  divisions  in  team and  individual                                                               
sports   address   those  fundamental   biological   differences.                                                               
Testifiers presented  a lot of red-herring  arguments today. This                                                               
bill is  not about  the potential for  sexual assaults  in locker                                                               
rooms,   panty  checks   to  identify   sex,  or   whether  birth                                                               
certificates  do  or  don't  identify sex.  The  matters  SB  140                                                               
addresses are  simple fairness and physical  safety. Even Caitlyn                                                               
Jenner  is on  record, saying  it is  not fair.  It is  unfair to                                                               
women, who waited for decades  to play sports, to compete against                                                               
women born as men. The  ultimate dilemma is women's rights versus                                                               
transgender rights; you cannot have it both ways.                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
1:22:04 PM                                                                                                                    
MARINA DAY,  representing self,  Fairbanks, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition  to SB  140, stating  she played  on a  women's hockey                                                               
team  that won  first place  in a  Fairbanks men's  league a  few                                                               
years back. The best players on  the women's team played with the                                                               
boys and were  conditioned from an early age to  play better, get                                                               
stronger,  and  move faster.  Lately  it  has become  popular  to                                                               
introduce discriminative legislation like  SB 140, even though it                                                               
is  un-American and  unconstitutional. Compliance  protections in                                                               
Sec.  14.18.160  of the  bill  prevent  schools from  considering                                                               
disputes  filed by  caring adults  and  organizations. This  bill                                                               
smells  rotten  and is  unconstitutional  under  Title IX,  which                                                               
states, "No  person in the United  States shall, on the  basis of                                                               
sex,  be  excluded  ..."  The   narrow  view  of  biological  sex                                                               
mentioned is  not supported by  research or science.  She brought                                                               
up  the  subjects  of bill  enforcement  and  intersex  children,                                                               
asking who would  join the core of gender police  to enforce this                                                               
legislation and  ensure children's  right to privacy.  Trans kids                                                               
have a  right to be  happy and  have productive lives.  She cited                                                               
Lia  Thomas, the  trans woman  swimmer who  said, "Before  I came                                                               
out,  I couldn't  visualize the  future." She  said this  bill is                                                               
only  good   for  greedy   Trumpism-fundraising  and   urged  the                                                               
committee to kill it.                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
1:24:35 PM                                                                                                                    
ELIZABETH  CHASE, representing  self, Kasilof,  Alaska, testified                                                               
in support  of SB  140, stating this  bill protects  young ladies                                                               
from competing with biological males  who have an unfair physical                                                               
advantage in  sports. To do otherwise  is cruel. SB 140  does not                                                               
discriminate  against the  LGBTQ community,  as testifiers  today                                                               
suggested. It  is sad that  Alaska had  to bring SB  140 forward,                                                               
but  the problems  happening in  the Lower  48 due  to an  agenda                                                               
pushed  by  the  gay  community spurred  this  bill  forward.  It                                                               
prevents  girls  in  Alaska  from   having  to  experience  those                                                               
problems. She applauded the legislators sponsoring SB 140.                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
1:26:19 PM                                                                                                                    
SARA  CHAPELL, representing  self, Haines,  Alaska, testified  in                                                               
opposition to SB 140, stating  the Haines Borough School District                                                               
supports students  reaching their full potential  by prioritizing                                                               
a culture of inclusion; and  honoring diversity, safety, respect,                                                               
and  responsibility.  She served  on  the  Haines Borough  School                                                               
Board in  2016 when  it adjusted to  include gender  identity and                                                               
nondiscrimination   policies.   It   was  not   a   controversial                                                               
adjustment, given that Haines had  a trans student in high school                                                               
at the time. Haines prioritizes  funding for students and being a                                                               
small district,  the budget is  always tight. The  district makes                                                               
tough  budget  choices,  but activities,  including  sports,  are                                                               
essential for  some students. Activities  can be the  one pursuit                                                               
keeping  a   young  person  engaged   and  thriving   in  school.                                                               
Activities  foster  belonging,  camaraderie, and  improved  self-                                                               
confidence  are about  much more  than winning  or losing.  It is                                                               
ridiculous to  deny children this  opportunity because  they live                                                               
according  to   their  gender  identity.   She  noted   that  the                                                               
transgender  student  mentioned  earlier   was  not  from  Haines                                                               
because Haines  puts students first.  She moved to  the community                                                               
as a teenager and could have  been met with disdain. Instead, she                                                               
was loved  and supported  and she  thrived. Young  people deserve                                                               
respect and  support. They  should be  allowed to  participate in                                                               
all  activities, including  sports, in  concert with  their lived                                                               
identity. She urged  the committee to vote against  moving SB 140                                                               
from committee, stressing her opposition  to this unnecessary and                                                               
discriminatory bill.                                                                                                            
                                                                                                                                
1:28:33 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAMI KRUEGER,  representing self, Wasilla, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition  to SB  140,  stating she  is the  parent  of a  trans                                                               
youth.  She asked  Senator Hughes  to  explain why  she needs  to                                                               
dictate who her child is.  She asked committee members to believe                                                               
God created  her child and  expressed doubt that God  would allow                                                               
her to reside in discomfort when  she has identified as queer her                                                               
entire  life and  knows  what she  stands for,  who  she is,  and                                                               
loves.  Ms. Krueger  said she  does not  understand why  the bill                                                               
sponsor wants to waste time and  money on something that is not a                                                               
problem. She stressed this bill  violates the Alaska Constitution                                                               
and  Alaskans right  to privacy  and  self-determination. SB  140                                                               
will end up in litigation if  it passes, which will be costly for                                                               
the state. She asked committee  members to stand with trans youth                                                               
in opposing SB 140.                                                                                                             
                                                                                                                                
1:30:25 PM                                                                                                                    
WILLIAM   MCKENZIE,   representing   self,   Fairbanks,   Alaska,                                                               
testified  in   opposition  to  SB   140.  He  has   coached  and                                                               
participated  in high  school  athletics and  can  attest to  the                                                               
importance  of  athletics for  youth.  A  lot  of kids  are  lost                                                               
without  such a  community. He  described SB  140 as  harmful and                                                               
unnecessary  and  unsupported  by  legitimate  studies  or  data.                                                               
Alaska is  a hard  place to live;  it has a  high adult  and teen                                                               
suicide rate,  and putting these  individuals at greater  risk is                                                               
tragic.  He characterized  SB 140  as  politically motivated  and                                                               
without moral justification.                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
1:31:56 PM                                                                                                                    
JAIME  YOU, representing  self, Anchorage,  Alaska, testified  in                                                               
opposition to SB 140, stating  that he is a nonbinary transgender                                                               
man. He  wants transgender girls  to have the  same opportunities                                                               
that he  had growing up. He  participated on a fencing  team, had                                                               
fun,  learned a  lot,  and  made memories.  It  was an  important                                                               
experience. This bill is vague,  and lacks the specificity needed                                                               
to  weed out  transgender people.  He explained  the origins  and                                                               
purpose  of  Title  IX  and  concluded  that  SB  140  is  not  a                                                               
commonsense bill.                                                                                                               
                                                                                                                                
1:34:20 PM                                                                                                                    
JACQUELYN GOFORTH,  representing self, Palmer,  Alaska, testified                                                               
in support  of SB 140,  stating she studies archeology  and there                                                               
is   a   forensic  difference   between   men   and  women.   Sex                                                               
determination  is   the  priority  of  a   forensic  investigator                                                               
identifying bodies mutilated beyond  recognition, like in a plane                                                               
wreck with severely burned passengers.  The National Institute of                                                               
Health reports  the sex-determining region  Y (SRY) gene  is used                                                               
as a sex-typing marker as the  results are said to be 100 percent                                                               
accurate. Biological differences between  males and females exist                                                               
and  will  always exist.  Only  conscious  individuals can  be  a                                                               
gender  other than  the one  they  were born  with because  their                                                               
unconscious self will always identify what the individual is.                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
1:36:04 PM                                                                                                                    
APRIL GARZA,  representing self,  Eagle River,  Alaska, testified                                                               
in opposition to  SB 140. Trans-athletes are the  gender to which                                                               
they  identify. Having  this  discussion, in  and  of itself,  is                                                               
discriminatory because  it discriminates  against trans-athletes.                                                               
She wondered  how many transgender  adults were able to  voice an                                                               
opinion during the crafting of SB  140 and weigh in on what being                                                               
a  member of  the trans  community looks  like or  how this  bill                                                               
would affect  them. SB  140 attempts to  negate the  existence of                                                               
the  trans community.  She is  a biological  woman and  she cares                                                               
about  all people  regardless of  their appearance,  identity, or                                                               
behavior even in the Senate.                                                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
1:38:43 PM                                                                                                                    
TRACEY WIESE  representing self, Anchorage, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition to  SB 140,  stating she  is a  board-certified family                                                               
and nurse practitioner and a  psychiatric nurse practitioner. She                                                               
is  the clinical  director at  Identity Health  Clinic, the  only                                                               
health clinic  directly serving  the needs  of the  lesbian, gay,                                                               
bisexual,  transexual, two-spirit,  intersex, asexual  (LGBTQ2IA)                                                               
community  in  Alaska. She  expressed  frustration  at having  to                                                               
testify  before the  legislature  again to  defend a  community's                                                               
right to  exist. One  social determinant of  health is  access to                                                               
safe recreational  spaces, allowing  people to  build foundations                                                               
necessary  for self-actualization  and  wellness. She  challenged                                                               
committee members to  look her young clients in the  eye and tell                                                               
them they have  no right to participate in sports.  This right is                                                               
the basis for self-actualization and  the right to be themselves.                                                               
She heard  more misrepresented science facts  espoused today than                                                               
in her entire life and asked where the evidence is that:                                                                        
- biology supports two sexes,                                                                                                   
-  genetic  science  offers   two  chromosomal  combinations  for                                                               
gender, and                                                                                                                     
-  women are  harmed  by  the presence  of  transgender women  in                                                               
sports.                                                                                                                         
There is no evidence for those  things, but there is evidence for                                                               
a  disproportionate burden  of  suicide completions,  intravenous                                                               
drug  use,  unhoused,  and chronic  mental  and  physical  health                                                               
conditions. SB  140 does not make  sense and is a  waste of time.                                                               
It  diverts attention  from pressing  Alaskan issues  like sexual                                                               
abuse, domestic violence, and suicide.                                                                                          
                                                                                                                                
1:41:03 PM                                                                                                                    
GREG  WEAVER, representing  self,  Mat-Su,  Alaska, testified  in                                                               
support  of SB  140, stating  he has  affiliations with  lifelong                                                               
Alaskans and disabled veterans who  live on the road system where                                                               
the  capital should  be.  He also  has  affiliations with  logic,                                                               
commonsense,  and  nature, not  science  or  those who  pick  and                                                               
choose their  science. He is a  believer, a father, a  son, and a                                                               
defender  and provider  for those  he cares  about and  loves. He                                                               
said  that his  father is  a  100 percent  disabled Marine  Corps                                                               
veteran and  he too  is disabled.  He has  been called  a lesbian                                                               
trapped in  a man's  body, and  is a  member of  one of  the most                                                               
hated  demographic  groups  in   the  country:  the  middle-aged,                                                               
straight,  white man  who believes  in common  sense and  working                                                               
hard.  He  said  many  individuals have  disabilities,  some  are                                                               
congenital, and some are chosen. Many  of those who oppose SB 140                                                               
chose not to identify with their  assigned sex at birth, a choice                                                               
enabled by doctors  and surgeons with back  pockets. Many callers                                                               
who testified  today are probably alone,  anti-social, attention-                                                               
seekers.  He encouraged  the custodians  of  these testifiers  to                                                               
reflect on their  likely lack of parenting, although a  lot of it                                                               
is not  their fault. Much  of the  blame is on  Washington, D.C.,                                                               
but  still, everyone  should be  accountable  for themselves.  He                                                               
takes  pride   in  having  raised  his   children  naturally  and                                                               
organically to  depend on and  defend themselves.  Women's rights                                                               
will  be trodden  if the  legislature fails  to pass  SB 140.  He                                                               
expressed  appreciation to  the  legislators  promoting the  bill                                                               
sponsors as it  is legislation worthy of laying down  his life to                                                               
defend.                                                                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
1:44:13 PM                                                                                                                    
MARK ZIMMERMAN,  representing self, Anchorage,  Alaska, testified                                                               
in opposition  to SB  140 and  with a heavy  heart. He  said this                                                               
biological   investigation  is   not   the  last   step  in   the                                                               
overreaching  agenda of  politicians  playing chromosome  police.                                                               
Sports  bans happening  in  Texas, Idaho,  and  Florida are  more                                                               
often than not the vanguard  for legislation leading to stripping                                                               
LGBTQ  topics from  schools and  preventing  trans children  from                                                               
receiving   gender-affirming   medical   treatment.   Reactionary                                                               
politicians  want Alaskans  to believe  this legislative  move on                                                               
trans  children will  end with  sports; it  definitely will  not.                                                               
Adults with  situational power  who constantly  investigate trans                                                               
and cisgender girls  will not protect female  adolescents, and it                                                               
is invasive under  current medical privacy laws.  Minors who were                                                               
girls at  birth will  find themselves  frequently surveyed  in an                                                               
uncomfortable  and  predatory manner.  Minors  who  are girls  by                                                               
transition are even more vulnerable as  a result of this bill. SB
140  combines genital  surveillance  with the  prospect of  being                                                               
tossed  out  and  suffering severe  mental  and  physical  health                                                               
consequences.   Giving   state-sponsored    immunity   to   child                                                               
molesters, which the  language of this bill  implicitly allows so                                                               
they  can  survey children  unopposed,  does  not protect  school                                                               
sports. He  expressed surprise that  conservative traditionalists                                                               
in power are suddenly concerned  about women's rights despite the                                                               
many  biological women  calling in  opposition. This  legislation                                                               
hints  at  a  more politically  motivated  intention,  especially                                                               
given that  trans girls are  specifically targeted but  not trans                                                               
boys. He  asked whether  the committee  cared if  transgender men                                                               
perform with cisgender men.                                                                                                     
                                                                                                                                
1:46:52 PM                                                                                                                    
JACOB BERA,  representing self,  Peters Creek,  Alaska, testified                                                               
in opposition to  SB 140, stating he has been  an educator for 19                                                               
years, a  cross-country running coach  for 16 years, and  has two                                                               
daughters.  He follows  a coaching  philosophy  of welcoming  all                                                               
abilities,  and everybody  on the  team races.  He works  hard to                                                               
foster  an inclusive  environment  in the  classroom  and on  the                                                               
trails and thinks SB 140 will  undo these efforts. This bill will                                                               
further harm the  mental health and well-being of  trans youth in                                                               
schools.  He  teaches  trans  youth   every  year  and  sees  the                                                               
tremendous pressures  they face to  be welcomed and  included. It                                                               
is heartbreaking to witness trans  students harming themselves in                                                               
the  struggle  for acceptance.  Not  many  trans youth  flock  to                                                               
sports  teams, and  due to  bills like  this, he  does not  blame                                                               
them. He  is ashamed of SB  140; there is more  important work to                                                               
do. He wanted  to hear the community's thoughts,  so he curiously                                                               
listened  to  today's  testimony.   He  expressed  pride  at  the                                                               
overwhelming testimony  against SB 140  and hearing all  the love                                                               
and support surrounding  and protecting trans youths.  Do not let                                                               
politics  or religious  sentiment exclude  all of  God's children                                                               
from being welcomed  and included, he said.  Rather than speaking                                                               
on behalf  of notable athletes,  let them testify  for themselves                                                               
on SB  140. He  urged committee  members to  devote more  time to                                                               
ensuring trans youth are supported and loved in Alaska.                                                                         
                                                                                                                                
1:48:55 PM                                                                                                                    
ERIN  WILLAHAN, representing  self, Anchorage,  Alaska, testified                                                               
in  opposition  to  SB  140 as  a  lifelong  Anchorage  resident,                                                               
student-athlete at the high school  and collegiate levels, and as                                                               
a  cisgender  woman.  This  bill  is  egregious,  discriminatory,                                                               
hateful, dangerous, and unethical. It  is a myth that transgender                                                               
women  harm cisgender  women  in  sports competitions.  Excluding                                                               
women that  are trans hurts  all women. Gender  policing subjects                                                               
trans    and    cisgender     student-athletes    to    invasive,                                                               
discriminatory,  and  harmful tests.  It  also  subjects them  to                                                               
accusations of  being too masculine  or good to be  "real" women.                                                               
This is  divisive, stigmatizing,  and creates deadly  risks. This                                                               
myth also  reinforces stereotypes  that women  are weak  and need                                                               
protection.  The bill's  motivation is  not about  protection but                                                               
exclusion, the exclusion of trans  women from more public spaces.                                                               
Athletes vary in  ability, whether trans or  cisgender, often due                                                               
to  reasons  beyond  the  biological sex  assigned  at  birth  or                                                               
pseudo-science.   For  example,   consider   parents  who   spend                                                               
thousands of  dollars on  a child's  training outside  school. No                                                               
evidence  exists to  prove that  the cisgender  girl, who  claims                                                               
trans  athletes  have  an  unfair  advantage,  does  not  already                                                               
consistently  perform   as  well   or  better   than  transgender                                                               
competitors.  During her  athletic  career, it  was  an honor  to                                                               
compete   alongside  fellow   teammates  and   opponents,  trans,                                                               
nonbinary, and cisgender alike.  Factors that hurt women's sports                                                               
are lack of  funding and anti-LGBTQ disport such as  SB 140. This                                                               
has  hurt  the  people  she   loves  and  the  family  she  found                                                               
participating  on  sports teams.  Trans  women  are women.  Every                                                               
woman and girl has the right  to participate in sports, play, and                                                               
privacy.   Forcing  trans   youth   to   endure  the   vitriolic,                                                               
dehumanizing discourse this hateful bill creates is shameful.                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
1:51:23 PM                                                                                                                    
DR.  MAUREEN   LONGWORTH,  representing  self,   Juneau,  Alaska,                                                               
testified in  opposition to SB 140.  She is a lifetime  member of                                                               
the American  Academy of  Family Physicians  and is  now retired,                                                               
having  practiced  in Alaska  for  over  30 years.  She  directed                                                               
committee members  to the  evidence-based recommendations  of the                                                               
American  Medical Association  (AMA),  citing discrimination  and                                                               
feelings  of  inequality  that  contribute  to  increased  mental                                                               
health problems, drug  abuse, and suicide in  children and teens.                                                               
The  AMA  specifically  opposes legislation  that  compounds  the                                                               
stigma  and discrimination  that  transgender  people face.  They                                                               
specifically  address preventing  sports discrimination  in their                                                               
recommendation.  It is  obvious  how  discrimination against  any                                                               
individual  or any  group of  individuals contributes  to disease                                                               
and social unrest.  She urged the committee to vote  no on SB 140                                                               
for the health of Alaska communities.                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
1:53:07 PM                                                                                                                    
CAITLIN KIRBY,  representing self,  Haines, Alaska,  testified in                                                               
opposition to  SB 140 as a  gay woman. She described  the bill as                                                               
discriminatory,  misogynistic,  and  a  perpetuation  of  harmful                                                               
gender  stereotypes.  It  targets  and  invades  the  privacy  of                                                               
children.  She  questioned the  message  of  SB 140,  stating  it                                                               
encourages limiting the right to  privacy and autonomy. This bill                                                               
requires educators  to single out  children who are  perceived to                                                               
be different,  subjecting them to a  questionable and humiliating                                                               
gender  confirmation   process  and   excluding  them   from  the                                                               
activities  of their  peers.  SB 140  lacks  fairness and  common                                                               
sense. Trans women and girls  are women and girls. She questioned                                                               
whether  the government  has  the right  to  decide the  defining                                                               
characteristics   of  a   woman.  It   is  unconstitutional   and                                                               
dehumanizing to ask women to  prove their womanhood. This bill is                                                               
an example of egregious government overreach.                                                                                   
                                                                                                                                
1:54:25 PM                                                                                                                    
JEREMY  HAWK, representing  self, Kasilof,  Alaska, testified  in                                                               
support of  SB 140,  stating Alaska  needs to  protect biological                                                               
women's rights from further erosion.  Many people who oppose this                                                               
bill  use hyperbole,  untruths,  and lies.  A previous  testifier                                                               
said physical examinations performed by  a doctor are required to                                                               
participate  in   team  sports.  He  asked   testifiers  to  stop                                                               
repeating  the  lie  that  coaches   and  teachers  will  perform                                                               
underpants checks to identify biological  sex; a doctor will make                                                               
that  determination. He  finds  it gross  and  creepy to  require                                                               
young  biological women  to share  locker  rooms with  biological                                                               
males; the same goes for hotel rooms on school trips.                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
1:55:53 PM                                                                                                                    
ELEILIA  PRESTON, representing  self, Wasilla,  Alaska, testified                                                               
in support of SB  140 as a mother and teacher  of dozens of young                                                               
girls. It is  unfortunate that Alaska needs this  bill to prevent                                                               
males from  dominating women's sports.  Her son listened  to many                                                               
testimonies  today  and  recommends   talking  to  the  children,                                                               
because he  believes they do  not want mixed-sex sports.  She has                                                               
heard male  students mention  they do not  want females  in their                                                               
sports because  they do not  want to hurt  them. They want  to be                                                               
gentle and kind.  It is unfortunate that men  want to participate                                                               
in  female sports  and  would  want to  be  hurtful.  It is  only                                                               
possible to play sports well  by coming into physical contact and                                                               
touching  places  that  females   may  not  like.  She  expressed                                                               
gratitude for SB 140.                                                                                                           
                                                                                                                                
1:58:02 PM                                                                                                                    
MOLLY  MILLER, representing  self, Kodiak,  Alaska, testified  in                                                               
opposition to  SB 140.  She was  born and  raised in  Kodiak, and                                                               
recently had returned  to Kodiak as an adult.  She reiterated the                                                               
message of previous testifiers,  stating this bill violates basic                                                               
privacy  rights, targets  trans girls  with harmful  effects, and                                                               
the legislation is  awful. Trans girls are girls,  and trans boys                                                               
are  boys. The  transphobia expressed  by people  supporting this                                                               
bill is outrageous.  She urged committee members to  think of all                                                               
children, both transgender and cisgender, and reject SB 140.                                                                    
                                                                                                                                
1:59:36 PM                                                                                                                    
ROSE   O'HARA-JOLLEY,  representing   self,  Fairbanks,   Alaska,                                                               
testified in opposition  to SB 140. She relayed the  story of how                                                               
she was  named, explaining it  is one  of the oldest  stories she                                                               
knows of herself and of its  importance to her identity. She told                                                               
callers  and those  listening that  people on  the teleconference                                                               
may not  see them,  but one day,  they will find  a family  and a                                                               
whole community  of people that do  see them. She gave  a message                                                               
of love and hope, stating everyone is valuable.                                                                                 
                                                                                                                                
2:02:00 PM                                                                                                                    
CHAIR  HOLLAND  closed  public  testimony  and  held  SB  140  in                                                               
committee.                                                                                                                      
                                                                                                                                
2:02:28 PM                                                                                                                    
There being  no further  business to  come before  the committee,                                                               
Chair Holland  adjourned the Senate Education  Standing Committee                                                               
meeting at 2:02 p.m.                                                                                                            

Document Name Date/Time Subjects
SB 140 Testimony - Support Concerned Alaskan Coaches and Athletes Group Letter.pdf SEDC 3/12/2022 10:00:00 AM
SB 140
SB 140 Presentation 03.03.2022 Reduced.pdf SEDC 3/12/2022 10:00:00 AM
SB 140
SB 140 Testimony - Opposition Recieved as of 3.15.2022.pdf SEDC 3/12/2022 10:00:00 AM
SB 140
SB 140 Testimony - Support Recieved as of 3.16.2022.pdf SEDC 3/12/2022 10:00:00 AM
SB 140