Governor DeWine Signs Trans Bathroom Ban That Includes Private Colleges In Ohio

The law is the first anti-trans one to pass in the aftermath of the 2024 election, and comes as Republicans are pushing bathroom bans in congress.

Mike DeWine // CC BY 4.0

On Wednesday, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine signed SB104 into law, banning transgender individuals from using bathrooms that align with their gender identity. Under this new law, trans women will be forced to use men’s restrooms and trans men will be required to use women’s restrooms if gender-neutral facilities are unavailable. The law’s passage marks a significant escalation in anti-transgender legislation, applying to individuals of all ages and extending to colleges and universities, including private institutions known for their high LGBTQ+ enrollment. It also mirrors the recent controversy in Congress, where Speaker Mike Johnson has declared that Congresswoman Sarah McBride will be banned from women’s restrooms on Capitol grounds. As the first anti-transgender law passed following the 2024 election, SB104 signals a troubling development in the national battle over transgender rights.

The Ohio bathroom ban faced significant hurdles in its initial form but was ultimately revived by tying it to the College Credits Plus Act, a popular bill designed to help dual-enrolled students earn college credits. The new law states that “no institution of higher education shall knowingly permit” transgender individuals to use restrooms aligning with their gender identity. Unlike earlier anti-transgender laws that primarily targeted youth, this bill expands its scope to include colleges and universities—both public and private—and applies to transgender people of all ages. Its reach extends beyond students to affect visitors, faculty, and anyone present on college property, marking a significant escalation in the breadth of anti-trans legislation.

There was speculation about whether Governor Mike DeWine would sign the legislation, given his previous vetoes of a transgender sports ban and a gender-affirming care ban in Ohio. Those vetoes were ultimately overridden after significant pressure from prominent Republican figures, including Donald Trump, who pressured breakaway Republicans to force the measures into law. This time, however, DeWine chose to avoid a similar conflict, quietly signing the bathroom ban into law without issuing a signing statement.

House Minority Leader Allison Russo delivered a pointed critique of the new law, questioning its relevance to the everyday challenges faced by Ohioans: “Bathroom bans don’t lower food, prescription, and gas prices, nor do they have any measurable effect on protecting women from perpetrators of violence and sexual abuse. Laws attacking the trans community are simply a distraction from the repeated inability of Ohio’s Republican leaders to solve the complex issues driving Ohio’s poor rankings in economic prosperity, education, population growth, and health.”

Russo’s remarks echo those of Congresswoman Sarah McBride, who is also facing a bathroom ban as such policies gain prominence in political discourse targeting transgender individuals. McBride has endured relentless hostility from her colleague, Representative Nancy Mace, who has posted hundreds of tweets about her over the past few days, misgendering McBride and implying that her presence in women’s restrooms poses a danger of sexual assault.

McBride shared similar words to Representative Russo when asked about her own situation, stating, “I've had conversations with colleagues in the Democratic caucus already that- that span diversity of thought about how the party should engage on a whole host of issues. But I think we are all united that every single American deserves equal rights. I think we are all united that attempts to attack a vulnerable community are not only mean spirited, but really an attempt to misdirect. Because every single time we hear the incoming administration or Republicans in Congress talk about any vulnerable group in this country, we have to be clear that it is an attempt to distract. It is an attempt to distract from what they are actually doing.”

Though these and other Democrats have framed anti-trans bills as a distraction, Republican actions tell a different story. Many state legislatures, along with Donald Trump’s recent presidential campaign, have made targeting transgender people a central focus. In the past two years, over 1,000 bills aimed at the LGBTQ+ community have been filed, and Republicans poured over $215 million into anti-trans ads. Early actions in Congress and states like Ohio suggest that these bills are not a sideshow—they are the main event.

In Ohio, many transgender people will now face the challenge of navigating bathroom laws while simply trying to get from class to class. Colleges like Antioch—a private institution with a predominantly queer student body—must grapple with how they could possibly enforce such a law. Meanwhile, on a national level, some Republicans are pushing for even stricter bathroom bans, with proposals that could extend to airports like Dulles and Reagan, as well as all federal buildings, further complicating the daily lives of transgender Americans.

Ohio’s new law will take effect in 90 days.