Palmetto State News

Governor Henry McMaster of South Carolina, alongside nine other Republican governors, has submitted an amicus brief in the case United States v. Skrmetti. This case involves Tennessee's Help Not Harm Law, which restricts physicians from performing gender-reassignment surgeries and providing puberty-blocking drugs or cross-sex hormones to minors. The U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear the case this term.

The brief states, "Governors have signed these prohibitions on experimental gender-transition procedures into law because they—and the citizens of their States—want to protect children. The goal is to keep children from making life-changing decisions that they may later regret." It further argues, "That's not some radical position. States prohibit children from making certain decisions all the time."

It also notes, "In other words, Governors signing laws that protect minors is nothing new. Just as Governors sought to protect children by keeping them from buying handguns or getting tattoos, so too did the Governors who signed the Help Not Harm bills."

Tennessee's law was initially blocked by a district court following a lawsuit by the ACLU citing a violation of the Fourteenth Amendment. However, in September 2023, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed this decision. The Supreme Court will now review it after issuing a writ of certiorari in June 2024.

Governor McMaster enacted South Carolina’s version of the Help Not Harm Law in May 2024. This law bars healthcare professionals from knowingly administering gender-transition procedures to individuals under 18 years old.

Joining Governor McMaster in support are Governor Kay Ivey of Alabama, Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders of Arkansas, Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida, Governor Brian P. Kemp of Georgia, Governor Jeff Landry of Louisiana, Governor Tate Reeves of Mississippi, Governor J. Kevin Stitt of Oklahoma, Governor Kristi Noem of South Dakota, and Governor Spencer J. Cox of Utah.

The complete brief is available for public viewing.