COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) -- The Columbus Board of Education must decide whether to comply with an Ohio Senate bill that states students must use the bathroom for the sex they were assigned at birth or keep their current gender-affirming policy.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost is now threatening legal action.
The district’s current policy allows students and staff to use the bathroom that aligns with their gender identity, but that policy is now against the law because of Senate Bill 104, also known as the bathroom ban.
The law, signed by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine, states that students at Ohio schools and universities must use the bathroom that matches their sex assigned at birth. Columbus City Schools is one of the only districts in the state with a gender-affirming policy.
Kaleidoscope Youth Center serves transgender and nonbinary youth. Amanda Erickson with Kaleidoscope said the CCS policy makes the kids she serves much more comfortable at school.
“That’s one of the most important things to think about with this kind of legislation is we have students that are actively trying to not eat and not drink all day so they don’t have to use the restroom,” Erickson said.
Right now, the Columbus school board is trying to decide whether to change the distict’s transgender bathroom policy to comply with state law. At a meeting on Tuesday, members tabled the policy so they could discuss it further.
“There was struggle at the table about other considerations, further considerations of punitive action that could possibly occur, but at the end of the day, for Michael Cole, for me, I felt it was important to deliver a very clear message to our community,” board president Michael Cole said after Tuesday’s meeting.
Board members said that they want all students to feel safe and included, and that the consequences of not following the bathroom ban are unclear.
Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost disagreed, sending a letter to Cole that said, in part, “I will swiftly bring legal action against the Board to obtain a court order forcing the Board to take all actions necessary to immediately comply with all applicable mandates of Senate Bill 104.”
Erickson said she understands that the board is facing a difficult decision.
“I think there is concern about how any kind of violation would impact both individuals on the school board and the school board itself and how that impact might trickle down to the families that are members of CCS,” Erickson said.
Yost’s letter to Cole said this is not a decision for the school board to make and said, “Compliance with Senate Bill 104 is not optional, and time is of the essence as the effective date is quickly approaching.”
In a statement responding to Yost, Cole wrote, in part, “Our commitment is to find a balanced path that complies with the law while honoring the identity and dignity of every student we serve.”
Ohio’s bathroom ban takes effect on Feb. 25. The Columbus Board of Education has another meeting on Feb. 18 where it will decide how to move forward with the policy.
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