You’d think that in the middle of a crowded political primary, busy politicians like New Jersey governor Chris Christie would be neglecting their home state. Well, primary or not, Chris Christie is still New Jersey’s governor, and he’s still doing governor things, like vetoing bills. Chris Christie has vetoed a change in New Jersey law that would have made it easier for transgender residents to change their legal gender.
Christie, for his part, says that the law was vetoed for the second year in a row due to security concerns. After all, changing a birth certificate is a big deal, as that basically controls every identification the person has or will ever have. That could cause major ripples and major security issues, particularly if the rechristened woman or man (or other, in the case of an available third gender option) doesn’t have the physical parts of their identified sex. Christie believes the current law, which allows residents to change genders after actually changing their physical body parts, is sufficient. Nine other states and Washington D.C. allow residents to change genders with proof of treatment by a medical professional.
“The members of LGBT community who worked with us to pass this legislation are obviously disappointed and outraged by the governor’s veto and his comments. But I’ve also been contacted by transgender residents who are thankful that the bill passed and feel empowered to keep going,” said Assemblywoman Valerie Huttle, one of the bill’s sponsors. She added, “If the Governor was honestly concerned about fraud, he could have conditionally vetoed the bill and inserted additional fraud protection language. He made his real intentions clear when he later said that this bill went ‘beyond the pale.’ He is pandering.”
Tags: transgender birth certificate, birth certificate changes, gender reassignment, new jersey, chris christie, chris christie vetoes transgender birth certificate bill, Valerie Huttle, unusual laws, christie vetos transgender bill, unusual laws, gender identification, gender and birth certificate laws
