SAVE America Act amendment to restrict transgender athletes fails in Senate

The Senate struck down an amendment to the Trump administration-backed SAVE America Act that would have banned transgender athletes' participation in women's sports. 

The House previously passed the SAVE America Act, which would require proof of citizenship to register to vote and stricter photo voter ID rules. 

In early March, President Donald Trump requested the Senate make more changes to the bill — including restrictions on transgender athletes, a ban on gender-affirming surgical care for minors (which is already rare) and a near-total ban on mail-in voting.

On March 17, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., proposed an amendment to prohibit a "recipient of federal funds" from allowing a "person whose sex is male to participate in an athletic program or activity that is designated for women or girls." 

On March 21, the Senate voted along party lines with 49 Republicans in favor of the amendment and 41 Democrats and independents against, failing to meet the 60-vote threshold necessary to overcome the filibuster and accept the change. The bill itself remains pending.

Trump's other attempts to fulfill this campaign promise to ban trans women from participating in women's sports have had mixed results. 

Twenty-nine states already have laws or administrative policies banning transgender athletes from participating in sports teams consistent with their gender identity.

In states without bans, the U.S. Department of Education has opened Title IX investigations into several state education departments, statewide athletic associations, and school districts for their policies related to sports participation in K-12 schools and universities.

Some organizations have complied with the federal department's requests to change their policies to ban transgender girls from participating in girls' school sports. The NCAA and U.S. Olympic Committee, for example, have adjusted their rules in response to Trump's executive order. 

The order, signed in February 2025, threatens to rescind federal funding for educational programs that allow transgender athletes to compete and directs the education secretary to clarify in guidance and regulations that "women's sports are reserved for women" based on White House-approved definitions of male and female.

Others have resisted the administration's pressure, prompting the Justice Department in 2025 to sue state school systems in Maine and California, alleging their policies violate Title IX. Those lawsuits are ongoing.  

Another fight over transgender athlete policies is heating up at San José State University in California. In January, federal education authorities alleged the school violated Title IX and demanded policy changes. On March 6, the California State University system sued the U.S. Department of Education over its continued threats to withhold federal funding. Uncowed, the Education Department gave the university system 10 days on March 24 to update its policies or risk losing that funding. 

This kind of legal jockeying signals the administration's ongoing efforts to implement Trump's campaign promise — even as the transgender athlete amendment failed. This promise remains In The Works.