Lee Cosponsors Ban on Child Sex-Change Procedures with $100K Penalties, Fund for Detransitioning Victims

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) today cosponsored the Safeguarding the Overall Protection of Minors (STOP) Act with Senator Roger Marshall (R-KS). This landmark legislation bans gender transition procedures performed on minors, imposes strict civil penalties on perpetrators, and for the first time creates a federal compensation fund dedicated to helping victims detransition using the collected penalty funds.

"There are kids in America receiving life-altering gender surgeries before they graduate high school. There are kids being given hormone blockers that can cause bone loss, depression, and myriad other medical issues when they should be playing hopscotch and riding bikes," said Senator Mike Lee. "Our kids deserve safe childhoods and informed consent, but instead they have harmful procedures pushed on them by predatory doctors who won't have to live with the consequences. I'm proud to cosponsor the STOP Act to outlaw risky gender transition procedures on minors, empower victims to sue for damages, and award the penalty funds from criminal doctors to their victims as recovery compensation."

"As an OB-GYN with over two decades of clinical experience, I know firsthand what these irreversible procedures do to children," said Senator Roger Marshall. "These are not medical treatments - they are child abuse. The STOP Act sends a clear message: if you harm a child by performing these procedures, there will be serious consequences. Our children deserve nothing less."

The STOP Act is endorsed by the American Principles Project (APP), the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission (ERLC), and Students for Life of America (SFLA).

"No child is born in the wrong body-they just have the wrong doctor. The STOP Act will ban irreversible sex change procedures for children, a common sense solution that enjoys overwhelming bipartisan support. The transgender industry has built a $4 billion empire fueled by the sterilization and mutilation of vulnerable adults and children. The STOP Act is a vital first step to protecting families and restoring sanity to healthcare. Thank you to Senator Marshall for his continued efforts to protect American children from this predatory industry." - Terry Schilling, President, American Principles Project

"What a gift it is to know that the same God who made the universe, made each one of us with intention, love, and care. Southern Baptists hold that God's design for creation includes the gift of gender, an immutable characteristic reflecting the very nature of our Creator. Yet, our cultural embrace of the radical sexual revolution has deceived people into denouncing truth and embracing harmful ideologies, especially among children. The ERLC is grateful to Sen. Marshall for introducing the STOP Act in the Senate to protect children from dangerous 'gender transition' drugs and procedures that cause irrevocable harm. Our government has a responsibility to safeguard its citizens, of which children are among the most vulnerable, and we are encouraged to see legislation that prioritizes their protection." - Dr. Gary Hollingsworth, Interim President, Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission

Background

Under intense pressure from radical gender ideologues, an estimated 14,000 minors have been manipulated into undergoing life-altering sex change procedures that leave them maimed, sterilized, and psychologically damaged.

President Trump's 2025 executive order banning the use of federal funds for gender transition procedures on minors was a critical first step. The STOP Act codifies and strengthens those protections in permanent federal law.

The STOP Act:

• Prohibits any person from knowingly performing, attempting to perform, conspiring to perform, or otherwise aiding or abetting any gender transition procedure on a minor under age 18 - including but not limited to puberty blockers, high-dose cross-sex hormones, mastectomies, hysterectomies, genital surgeries, and facial procedures.
• Imposes a civil monetary penalty of at least $100,000 per violation, collectible by the Attorney General, with employers and clinics also held accountable.
• Creates a private right of action for victims of gender transition procedures - or their parent, guardian, or caretaker if the victim was still a minor - to sue in federal court for damages.
• Establishes the "Victims of Gender Transition Procedures Compensation Fund" in the U.S. Treasury - funded by civil penalties collected from offenders - to provide grants to private nonprofits that assist individuals who are detransitioning.

Read exclusive coverage by The Federalist here.

Access full text of the bill here.

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