Protect Female Sports Act
HB1083 would create the “Protect Women’s and Girls’ Sports Act” and add a new article to Title 22 of the Colorado Revised Statutes governing school athletics. The bill requires interscholastic and intramural athletic teams or sports sponsored by schools or athletic associations to be explicitly designated as male, female, or coeducational/mixed based on biological sex. It also bars teams designated for females, women, or girls from being open to male participants, and generally bars teams designated for males, men, or boys from being open to female participants unless no female team is available for that sport.
The bill further prohibits state agencies, licensing or accrediting organizations, and athletic associations from investigating or taking adverse action against a school for maintaining separate female teams. It directs the commissioner of education to notify a noncompliant public school or postsecondary institution and allow time to comply before taking remedial action within the commissioner’s authority. The bill also includes a provision stating that individuals born with a diagnosed disorder of sex development retain protections and accommodations under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, and it contains a severability clause.
If enacted, HB1083 would significantly affect school athletics policy in Colorado by codifying sex-segregated team eligibility rules for public and private K-12 schools and Colorado postsecondary institutions, as well as athletic associations that sponsor or administer competitions. It would add new statutory definitions for terms such as male, female, boy, girl, man, and woman, and would create a new article in Title 22 focused on athletic team designation and enforcement. The bill would also constrain the ability of state regulators, accrediting bodies, and athletic associations to challenge or penalize schools for maintaining separate female teams.
The available vote history suggests the bill faced substantial opposition in committee. On March 9, 2026, the House State, Civic, Military, & Veterans Affairs Committee voted 3-7 to refer the bill to the Committee of the Whole, then immediately voted 7-3 to postpone the bill indefinitely, effectively stopping it in committee. No committee transcript was provided, so the record reflects the outcome of the votes rather than detailed debate. Overall, the bill appears to have had support from a minority of committee members and opposition from a majority.
The central point of contention is whether school sports should be organized strictly by biological sex and whether schools should be protected from complaints or enforcement actions when they maintain female-only teams. Supporters, as reflected in the bill text, argue that separate teams protect fairness, safety, and scholarship opportunities for female athletes. Opponents are not identified in the provided materials, but the committee votes indicate enough resistance to prevent the bill from advancing. The bill’s definitions of male and female, its restrictions on participation by transgender students, and its limits on oversight by state agencies and athletic associations are the most likely sources of controversy.