Texas House passes bill banning gender-affirming care for transgender minors.

The Texas House of Representatives has given initial approval to Senate Bill 14, which would ban transgender minors from receiving puberty blockers and hormone therapy. The bill would also ban transition-related surgeries, though those are rarely performed on kids. The legislation is a priority for Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and the Republican Party of Texas, which opposes any efforts to validate transgender identities. Pending one more final vote in the House, SB 14 would return to the Senate, which has already passed a version of the legislation that mandates an abrupt cutoff as opposed to a tapering off process.