South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson has joined 27 other state attorneys general in urging the U.S. Supreme Court to allow states to enact laws that restrict participation in girls’ sports to biological females. The move comes as the Supreme Court considers cases from West Virginia and Idaho, where similar laws were overturned by federal appeals courts.
The Fourth and Ninth Circuit Courts of Appeals previously ruled that these state laws likely violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment because they exclude transgender women—biological males who identify as female—from competing on girls’ or women’s sports teams. The Fourth Circuit also found that Title IX requires states to permit transgender athletes to compete according to their gender identity.
Attorney General Wilson commented, “The important question here is, can states pass laws to protect girls? Title IX was passed to give them the same opportunities as boys to play sports, and I think we need to uphold that and protect girls in the locker rooms, pools, courts, and fields. I think it’s hard to argue that the Equal Protection Clause and Title IX are not supposed to give equal protection to female athletes.”
In 2022, South Carolina enacted its own law—the Save Women’s Sports Act—which classifies athletic teams based on biological sex at birth rather than gender identity. This legislation mirrors those passed in West Virginia and Idaho.
The amicus briefs submitted to the Supreme Court were led by Alabama and Arkansas attorneys general, with support from officials representing Alaska, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia (in Hecox only), West Virginia (in B.P.J. only), Wyoming and Guam.
Attorney General Wilson’s involvement reflects a broader national debate over how schools should determine eligibility for participation in girls’ athletics programs.
