House Bill 257 specifically restricts transgender bathroom use in publicly-owned buildings like schools and recreation centers. It also requires government facilities to have at least one gender-nonspecific restroom.
Along with Florida, Utah is now the second state to criminalize transgender people for using the sex-designated bathroom or locker room different from their gender at birth.
The bill’s sponsor, Summit County Republican Rep. Kera Birkeland, said the new law “doesn’t target one specific group” and aims to create “privacy for every Utahn.”
Not everyone agrees. Dr. Sean Udell, a psychiatrist at Park City Hospital, called on the city council Thursday to support the local LGBTQ+ population amid the bill’s passage.
“Rates of suicidal ideation are markedly higher in this population,” Dr. Udell said. “Rates of homelessness are higher in this population, and that’s primarily driven by bias. By these young people being forced out of their homes at an early age, abandoned by family members, because of this ideology that they are wrong, that they have some sort of problem with them.”
Udell said the new bill makes an already harmful environment in Utah even worse.
“Bills like this just worsen the mental health of this community here in Park City and Summit County. It’s really emotional, the whole thing. And it’s just really sad to be treating them as their psychiatrist, because a lot of this illness is preventable, if we had a system that was more just and equitable, if there was less bigotry in our community.”
Members of Park City’s LGBTQ+ task force shared similar remarks. Later in the meeting, Park City Mayor Nann Worel received consent from the council to launch an audit into all city-owned and operated buildings, to ensure that each has a gender neutral restroom for the transgender population.
“I think all of us were moved by the public comment that we got tonight about the difficulties and the safety concerns that the passage of this bill is imposing on some very important members of our community,” Worel said.
Last year the Human Rights Campaign gave Park City an equality index score of 86, which is second in the state behind Salt Lake City. Using various factors, the index measures how well cities support the LGBTQ+ community.