TEXAS, USA — A new policy is limiting the changes transgender Texans can make when it comes to their identities.
On Aug. 30, the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) made it so that Texans are unable to update their sex on their birth certificates, even if they previously received a court order permitting them to do so.
Before last week, court orders allowed for sex changes without specifications, which KUT confirmed after speaking to a DSHS spokesperson. Now, the only updates allowed are related to errors in filling out birth certificate forms.
Before this change, DSHS's website permitted Texans to "correct [a] child's date of birth, place of birth, time of birth [and] sex." Since Friday, the site shifted to say individuals can "correct child's sex due to proven incompletion or inaccuracy," with proof of medical records, a letter from the hospital, or a copy of a court order.
Typically, these corrections take an average of 25 to 30 days to go into effect.
Texas isn't the only place in the U.S. to block sex changes on birth certificates. This change follows five other states across the country, including Montana, North Dakota, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Tennessee.
Roughly two weeks ago, the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) made a similar shift to its driver's license procedures.
The change was implemented on Aug. 20, barring DPS from accepting court orders that would change Texans' sex identities unless a specific error was made.
KVUE reached out to DSHS Tuesday regarding the birth certificate change, and received the following statement:
"Recent public reports have highlighted concerns about the validity of court orders purporting to amend sex for purposes of state-issued documents. DSHS is seeking assistance from the Office of Attorney General to determine the applicability of these concerns to amendments to vital records. DSHS is no longer altering applicants’ sex on birth certificates based on these court orders."
DSHS also said the applications aren't being processed and that if the policy were to be reversed, Texans would need to reapply to update their birth certificates.