The North Carolina General Assembly overrode Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper’s vetoes of three anti-transgender bills in a late session Wednesday.

Cooper vetoed House Bill 574, House Bill 808 and Senate Bill 49 on July 5, stating in a press release the measures were “a triple threat of political culture wars using government to invade the rights and responsibilities of parents and doctors, hurting vulnerable children and damaging our state’s reputation and economy … .”

HB 574 bans trans girls and women from playing on girls and women’s middle school, high school and college sports teams. The House of Representatives overrode the veto by a 74-45 margin. The Senate followed suit. 

“Since 2019, there have been only two transgender girls playing sports in the state of North Carolina … these girls are certainly not trying to destroy women’s sports. These girls are just trying to belong,” state Sen. Julie Mayfield (D-49) said.

HB 808 bans all health providers, public or private, in the state from providing gender-affirming care to minors. House lawmakers voted 73-46 to override the governor’s veto. The Senate followed suit by a 27-18 vote margin.

“This may be the most heartbreaking bill in a heartbreaking session,” state Sen. Lisa Grafstein (D-13) said. “This bill tells parents how to raise their kids … There have been so many families who have pleaded with us, testified before us, about this bill … The implication is somehow 30 people in this room know better than the families and children who know the pain we’re putting them through …”

SB 49 requires public school staff to tell parents and guardians if a student asks to use a new name or set of pronouns. The Senate overrode the veto by a 27-18 vote margin, followed by a 72-47 House vote. Some teachers are already planning to protest and act against the bill, according to the Associated Press.

“The legislature finally comes back to pass legislation that discriminates … Yet they still won’t pass a budget when teachers, school bus drivers and Medicaid Expansion for thousands of working people getting kicked off their health plans every week are desperately needed,” Cooper said in a press release prior to votes. “These are the wrong priorities, especially when they should be working nights and weekends if necessary to get a budget passed by the end of the month.”

In the final days of its legislative session, the Republican-controlled North Carolina General Assembly advanced anti-transgender bills that would ban gender-affirming care for minors at public health facilities and trans participation in school sports.

There are two bills — one in the House of Representatives and one in the state Senate — that would ban gender-affirming care for minors. 

Senate Bill 631 would make it illegal for a public health care facility, such as UNC Health — one of the largest healthcare systems in the state — to provide gender-affirming care to those under 18 years old. The bill would also limit use of state funds for gender-affirming care. 

House Bill 808 would ban all health providers, public or private, in North Carolina from providing gender-affirming care to minors.

“My access to gender-affirming care saved my life,” 15-year-old Rowan Bilodeau testified to legislators. “I want others to have that same opportunity. I’m tired of seeing my brothers and sisters die because they are being denied their rights.”

Bilodeau, who has been undergoing gender-affirming transition care with the support of his parents, was the only member of the public allowed to speak against HB 808.

SB 631 passed both the House and the Senate and is currently back in the Senate for concurrence. HB 808 passed the House and is now being reviewed in Senate committees.

The House has also introduced a bill to limit trans participation in school sports. House Bill 574 would restrict trans women from playing women’s sports at the middle school, high school and college levels.

“At the end of the day, we are going to put children at risk,” Democrat Sydney Batch said during a Senate meeting. “Children are going to kill themselves. They already are. And by passing this bill, we’re going to see a higher rate … I don’t think that putting a target on their backs and putting them in a position where they could lose their lives is worth what this bill is trying to do.”

While it’s expected that Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper will veto anti-trans bills that come to his desk, Republicans hold veto-proof majorities in both chambers.

Cooper had previously signed into law the repeal of House Bill 2, known as North Carolina’s “bathroom bill.” HB2 mandated that trans people use bathrooms that match the sex printed on their birth certificate. The bill led to multiple boycotts and economic losses for the state, which some estimates put into billions of dollars.

The Human Rights Campaign has unequivocally condemned the passage of SB 631.

“SB 631 is a discriminatory effort by extremist politicians in North Carolina to attack transgender people, particularly youth and the people who support them,” HRC Senior Director for Legal Policy Cathryn Oakley said in a press release. “As these legislators know, gender-affirming care is supported by every single credible medical organization in the United States. It is best practice care that is always delivered in an age appropriate manner in consultation with parents, doctors, and medical experts.” 

HRC has declared 2023 to be the “worst year on record” for anti-LGBTQ legislation, with more than 525 anti-LGBTQ bills being introduced in state legislatures across the country. According to the HRC, more than 220 of these bills specifically target the rights of trans people, the “highest number of bills targeting transgender people in a single year to date.”

A federal judge on June 20 stuck down Arkansas’ ban on gender-affirming care for minors, the first of its kind in the nation.

“Rather than protecting children or safeguarding medical ethics, the evidence showed that the prohibited medical care improves the mental health and well-being of patients and that, by prohibiting it, the State undermined the interests it claims to be advancing,” U.S. District James Moody, Jr., wrote in the ruling. 

North Carolina Democrats raised the idea of a ban in the state being subject to similar litigation.

“If we pass this law, it’s going to cause more litigation. We have an indication from federal courts that this is unconstitutional,” Democrat Marcia Morey said. “We are once again interfering in a family and child’s medical decisions.”