(Source: MIRS.news, Published 01/29/2025) Rep. Jaime Greene (R-Richmond) introduced the Female Athletics Integrity of Records (FAIR) Act yesterday that requires a student athlete's awards, rankings and records achieved in an individual – not team – sport, to be categorized according to their biological sex. 

Greene told reporters on Wednesday that if someone doesn't identify as either male or female, and they break a school record, it will be recorded in a separate category.  

Greene said the women's rights movements of the 1960s and 1970s overcame so many obstacles for women, but without this provision, she said women would still be competing against men in areas without a level playing field.  

"Transgenders are dealing with their own issues. They've got stuff coming up. I don't want to take anything away from them, but I do believe they need to have their own category," Greene said. 

In her "non-legal opinion" as she called it, Progressive Women's Caucus Chair Rep. Laurie Pohutsky (D-Livonia) said that the bill runs afoul of the Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act (ELCRA) that prevents discrimination against an individual based on their sexual orientation or gender and more.  

"It says a lot about our values that we are even still engaging in this conversation, and that we are attacking not only the most vulnerable people in our community, but also some of the youngest," Pohutsky said. 

Greene said she wrote the bill with ELCRA in mind.  

HB 4031 would apply to sports like track, swimming, weightlifting or any sport that the athlete competes in as an individual and not as a team. Greene said she hasn't found a way to apply the same restriction to team sports yet without violating ELCRA. 

No penalties would apply for schools that don't follow the policy, Greene said. Rep. Natalie Price (D-Berkley), a member of the Progressive Women's Caucus, said that the bill is a threat to kids when it comes to the question of enforcement mechanisms, like how schools would "check" a student's gender.  

Greene said the way a school would check the student's gender is by referencing the birth certificate the student has on file with the Michigan High School Athletic Association (MSHAA).  

The 2023-24 MHSAA handbook lists a birth certificate at the top of the list when it comes to documents that would need to be filed, but a student could also have a baptismal record, a school record or an affidavit from a physician on file, and it would serve the same purpose.  

"I would think that the women who support women would want to support women who are all about women's rights and women's empowerment," Greene said.  

However, Rep. Emily Dievendorf (D-Lansing), a member of the Progressive Women's Caucus, said that transgender or non-binary student athletes should have the ability to be kids and to participate in kids' activities. 

"This is an opportunity for us as legislators, in the governor's office, at every level of government to hold the line on what is humane, on what is fair, and create a baseline for ensuring dignity for our constituents," Dievendorf said.