FIRST ON THE DAILY SIGNAL—Heritage Action for America is treating the Defining Male and Female Act, a bill that would define sex based on biology, as a key vote in scoring how lawmakers stand on issues of concern to conservatives.
Rep. Mary Miller, R-Ill., introduced the legislation at the end of July to establish in federal law that there are only two sexes: male and female.
“God created man with XY chromosomes and woman with XX chromosomes, and no left-wing politician has the power to change that indisputable fact,” Miller told The Daily Signal. “The Biden-Harris administration is trying to force the American people to deny reality by allowing biological men to participate in women’s sports through its illegal rewrite of Title IX.”
“The Defining Male and Female Act will prevent any future administration from jeopardizing women’s safety, and I am pleased to see Heritage Action scoring a key vote on this critical legislation,” the Illinois Republican said.
When Heritage Action issues a key vote, legislators are notified that their position on the legislation at issue will affect their score on the Heritage Action Scorecard. In this case, lawmakers who cosponsor the legislation will receive credit on the scorecard.
Miller intended the bill to combat the Biden-Harris administration’s Title IX rule change, which adds “gender identity” to the list of sex-based protections, allowing males to share female spaces and participate in female sports.
“Men and women have distinct biological differences that are obvious to everyone except the Left,” Janae Stracke, vice president of outreach and advocacy at Heritage Action, said in a written statement. “The safety, spaces, and opportunities of women and girls across the country are now under constant threat, thanks to the Biden-Harris administration’s illegal rewrite of Title IX and the relentless push to force radical gender ideology in America’s schools.”
The U.S. Courts of Appeals for the 5th and 6th Circuits granted preliminary injunctions on the change Aug. 16, blocking the new rules from going into effect in those areas.
Heritage Action praised Miller for introducing the bill.
“While it is unfortunate that legislation to accurately define sex is necessary, Heritage Action applauds Rep. Miller for taking up this fight to defend science and safety,” Stracke said. “She has the full support of Heritage Action’s grassroots army and the vast majority of Americans who accept the biological fact that men cannot be women.”