AUSTIN, Texas — A bill restricting transgender student athletes from playing on school sports teams that match their gender identity, rather than their gender assigned at birth, is headed to the governor. On Sunday, the House accepted changes the Senate made and Gov. Greg Abbott has signaled he's ready to sign the bill into law.

What You Need To Know

  • Bill limiting transgender student-athletes from sports under gender identity heads to governor

  • The House approved Senate changes to the bill Sunday

  • Critics protested the bill at the Capitol this year

  • According to the Trevor Project, more than 90% of LGBTQ youth reported said recent politics had a negative impact on their mental health

Critics repeatedly came to the Capitol to protest the legislation this year. They say it unfairly targets transgender children and puts them at risk for being discriminated against. Proponents say it's about keeping an even playing field.

Getting the bill through the House proved to be a major hurdle for lawmakers this year after legislation failed in the lower chamber until now. One of the people who stood in its way of passing the House was Houston-area Democratic State Rep. Harold Dutton who chairs the House Education Committee. He blocked similar legislation from getting to the House floor last special session and told Capital Tonight he still doesn't think the measure is necessary.

“I still think that boys ought to play with boys and girls ought to play with girls, but to the extent that there’s a problem related to transgender children playing sports or competing in UIL activities, I don’t think there’s any member of the legislature that can tell you the extent of that problem,” Dutton said.

Major employers within the state have signaled their opposition to the bill, but Dutton said he doesn’t know how that could affect the state’s business climate.

“But I think for the legislature, when we pass a bill, it ought to be on the basis of an identified problem and not on the basis of a ghost problem or someone trying to invent these ‘boogeymans,’” he said.

In the past year, more than 90% of LGBTQ youth reported recent politics have negatively affected their mental health. That's according to the Trevor Project, which provides 24/7 crisis support services to LGBTQ young people. Their toll free number is 866-488-7386. 

Click the video link above to watch our full interview with Rep. Dutton.