Maine Democratic lawmakers on the Legislative Council voted Thursday to reject an after-deadline emergency bill proposal that would restrict the use of public school bathrooms by biological sex.
The requested bill, entitled “An Act to Create a Safe Environment in Public School Bathrooms by Restricting Their Use to Persons of the Same Biological Sex,” was introduced by Rep. Katrina Smith (R-Palermo).
Asst. House Minority Leader Amy Arata (R-New Gloucester) presented the bill on behalf of Rep. Smith to the Legislative Council Thursday.
Rep. Arata pointed to an ongoing situation at Brewer High School that involves a student using the bathroom opposite to their biological sex as the impetus behind Smith requesting the bill.
Arata said the Brewer situation “is causing a lot of distress among the students,” and that those students are “holding it all day instead of being use the bathroom” due to the situation.
Republican House Leader Billy Bob Faulkingham (R-Winter Harbor) spoke in support of the requested bill, recognizing that although it is a “politically charged” issue, the Legislative Council could advance the requested bill to a committee where reasonable guidelines surrounding the use of public school bathrooms.
“I have a lot of compassion for children that are going through gender issues and things of that nature, but I think this is an issue that has — it’s gone off the rails,” Rep. Faulkingham said.
“I think that girls should feel safe and protected in their bathrooms,” he said. “There’s a reason why we have a boys’ room and a girls’ room.”
Asst. Republican Senate Leader Lisa Keim (R-Oxford) voiced her support for the requested bill as well, saying that although she did not know “what the right solution is,” she said that “leaving it on the backs of middle school kids to try to figure out how they can push back on this isn’t the right solution either.”
Senate President Troy Jackson (D-Aroostook) appeared at first to be in support of the bill, telling Sen. Keim and Rep. Faulkingham that “probably both of you are absolutely correct.”
Sen. Jackson, however, added that in his opinion the place for the matter to be decided is at the school.
“Wherever you’ve got a school board, that’s, to me who makes these decisions, and that’s why I’ll be voting against it,” Jackson said.
Pushing back on the Senate President’s argument, Rep. Arata said that the Maine Supreme Judicial Court decision on the topic — the 2014 case Doe v. RSU 26 — has resulted in school boards thinking they do not have the authority to control who uses the school restrooms.
“I think it’s the Legislature’s responsibility to give them some guidance,” Arata told Jackson.
Asst. Senate Majority Leader Mattie Daughtry, D-Cumberland, had a different opinion on the Maine Supreme Court case, saying that the 2014 ruling “really did settle this.”
“I do think that [Maine] Supreme Court case really did settle this, especially when consideration within the Maine’s Human Rights Act, and the different protections that we have,” Sen. Daughtry said.
“I think it’s a good time to remind folks, especially schools who are looking at new construction — if they’re lucky enough to get on the construction list — that gender neutral bathrooms are a wonderful thing,” Daughtry added.
That was the end of the Legislative Council’s discussion on the requested bill, and Senate President Jackson quickly moved for a vote.
The requested bill failed in a party line 4 to 6 vote, with all Democratic lawmakers on the Legislative Council voting against the bill.
typical Demorats
Same sex marriage, LGBTQ “rights”, trans males playing against females in sports, full-term abortions, pornography in classrooms, males and females sharing bathrooms and locker rooms, men can give birth, pronoun usage, etc. And, we’re OK with all of that? If you still believe Marxist revolutionaries, who have infiltrated ALL of our institutions, aren’t trying to abolish the nuclear family and substitute it with government edicts, then you’re naive and also part of the problem. Speak up and fight back!
Chaos is the Communist DemocRat’s friend.
Why don’t the parents of all the girls initiate a class action suit against the school for violation of their rights to privacy and safety in a school environment? So the majority have to dance to the tune of a minority of one-have I got that right? That so called adults go along with this insanity is a reflection of the moral decay infecting our society. Enabling children with this psychological disorder is abuse pure and simple. A chromosomal test would clear the air-follow the science so to speak. Because I think I’m a dog doesn’t make me one.
Of course the dems tanked this common sense approach to treating young vulnerable women with respect. Why would the dems support young women asking to feel safe and respected within the confines of their school? I guess the dems think that these young women should just suck up being treated no better than barnyard animals! Senator Jackson once again underscores his duplicity and legislative uselessness and clueless Senator Daughty embarrassed himself by standing by an erroneous PERSONAL OPINION! (I might think the sky is green, but that does not make me right!)
The students in Brewer, who respectfully submitted their request to have their human dignity restored, were basically told to suck it up. Consequently, since the people in charge are too weak, or unwilling to do the right thing, I have a great solution. Allow the gender dysmorphic minority full access to the teachers’ lounge!
Since the students tried to use reason and were rebuffed they should en mass walk out in protest. Just as the girls forced to have a guy on their team should refuse to play. Interesting that you don’t see girls trying to invade boys locker rooms and play on boys teams. This has got to stop. If it doesn’t it’s just another notch in the decline of an amoral society. It is marxist/bolshevik ideology.
Asst. Senate Majority Leader Mattie Daughtry has the common sense of a block of wood and demonstraits the complete mind bending thought process of a woke libertard. Her upbringing by libertard parents is their fault and we continue to pay the price for the ruminations of idiots like this. VOTE THIS BIMBETTE OUT AT THE NEXT ELECTION.
Region 9 CDL school teaches future class A, B and school bus drivers that men can wake up one day and decide that they are women. They have two sets (locations) of bathrooms. They are non gender designated but they are also single holes with locks on the doors. There is signage in the hallway, however, that states that truck driver students are only allowed to use the bathrooms near the CDL class room.
Democrats…especially liberal, are shameful. Aside from going against moral standards and centuries-old tradition, they go against all logic that
dictates that the needs of the many outweight the needs of the few. Especially when the few are psychologically impaired and/or morally corrupt.
Wake up Mainers and take your state back from this madness.