Governor Greg Abbott has reaffirmed Texas’ official stance on gender recognition, stating that the state acknowledges only two sexes—male and female. In a letter sent to all state agency heads, Abbott emphasized that Texas law aligns with this definition, echoing language from a recent executive order by former President Donald Trump.
“This office has consistently reiterated a simple truth: The State of Texas recognizes only two sexes — male and female — and sex discrimination consists in treating a member of one sex less favorably than the other, absent some pertinent difference,” Abbott wrote.
His letter comes in response to efforts by Travis County to allow changes to state identification documents based on gender identity rather than biological sex. Abbott dismissed these efforts as legally unfounded, stating that state agencies, including the Department of Public Safety (DPS) and the Department of State Health Services (DSHS), were correct in rejecting them.
In September, DSHS reinforced this position by removing court orders as an acceptable form of documentation for changing the sex marker on birth certificates. Previously, the Texas Vital Statistics website had allowed for such modifications with a court order.
Abbott also referenced Trump’s executive order, titled “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government.” The order asserts that “[i]t is the policy of the United States to recognize two sexes, male and female. These sexes are not changeable and are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality.”
The governor concluded his letter by directing all Texas state agencies to ensure their policies and practices align with state law and biological definitions of sex. “All Texas agencies must ensure that agency rules, internal policies, employment practices, and other actions comply with the law and the biological reality that there are only two sexes — male and female,” Abbott wrote.
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