Rep. Sheila Dills, R-Tulsa, today commented on statements from the NCAA that they will pull championship events from locations where transgender biologically male athletes are not allowed to participate in girl’s or women’s sports. The news came after passage of Senate Bill 2, the Save Women’s Sports Act, in a House committee last week.

The act requires public school or college athletic teams to be designated based on biological sex. Dills is a coauthor of the bill.

We all want to promote business and economic development opportunities in our state and our local communities, and we certainly love athletics. But we cannot sacrifice our Oklahoma values, which include fairness in sport and the protection of opportunities for women and girls in Oklahoma, for the sake of dollars or even the popularity of such events.

Title IX, federal civil rights law, specifically protects women and girls based on the intent of the definition of biological sex. A small section of the population wants to cloud that intent.  

The NCAA continuously tries to flex its muscles and reshape state’s rights and individual values. More than half of the states in our nation have drafted similar legislation, and this is an opportunity for Oklahoma to stand strong on this issue and provide leadership for others to follow.

I applaud the authors of Senate Bill 2 as they seek to protect women and girls in the sports they play.

Sheila Dills was a scholarship athlete at Oklahoma State University from 1985-89. She later served on the coaching staff as a recruiting coach. She is past president of the Women’s Oklahoma Golf Association and has served as a rules official at state and national golf events.