Nobody enjoys visiting the DMV, so why did LGBTQ+ activists in Florida stage a “die-in” on February 9 at the typically unremarkable operational buildings?
Solution: A letter from the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles that trans citizens and their advocates claim threatens to subject them to increased alienation and abuse was posted online on January 29.
Alejandra Caraballo, a Harvard law professor and proponent of LGBTQ+ rights, wrote on X, “Florida has taken punitive operational action and banned female marker modifications on drivers’ licenses.” Any transgender man whose identity has been altered may be suspended. People attempting to change it after that risked being charged with “fraud.”
Floridians are not allowed to replace their driver’s licenses in order to change what is written on the passport next to the word “sex,” according to a letter from Robert Kynoch, the agency’s deputy executive chairman. The action comes before two state Legislature bills that, if passed, would compel a similar plan.
Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles is the cause.
Transgender people are not allowed to modify the “M” or “F” on an existing license as a result of the agency’s action. However, it is unclear how this change would impact fresh certificate programs or permit holders who have already had their gender identities reflected in their licenses.
The letter also stated that the term “gender” refers to “immutable biological and genetic qualities” when it is used in the Florida driver’s license act. It claimed that misrepresenting one’s identity while applying for a permit might lead to civil or criminal penalties.
Legal experts questioned whether the office is legally permitted to implement this statutory view because “Gender” is not defined in the section of the law that governs pilot’s licenses and ID cards.
Transgender legal experts told PolitiFact that they think the policy change merits a legal challenge, but lawyers are keeping an eye out and weighing their options as legislators appear ready to try to define an equivalent rule.
This is what we discovered.
Memo forbids replacing certificates in order to switch genders.
Prior to the department’s policy change, individuals who provided a letter from confirming they were receiving gender transition treatment were permitted to change the “sex” field on their license or ID—either “M” or “F”—to reflect their gender identity, whether it be male or female.
Although the terms “sex” and “gender” are frequently used interchangeably, they are defined differently by skilled professionals and the majority of major medical institutions.
Sex refers to a biological category that is based on physical characteristics like genes, hormones, and genitalia. It can be classified as male, female, or intersex, which means that people were born with reproductive or sexual anatomy that doesn’t neatly fit into any category.
According to experts, gender identity refers to a person’s inner perception of themselves as men, women, something in between, or both. Some people’s sex and gender are the same, but trans people have an incompatibility between the two.
According to Kynoch’s memo, Florida statute 322.17, which specifies the circumstances under which the department may issue a replacement license, states that the older policy that permitted people to obtain new licenses to indicate gender changes is “not supported by legal authority.”
According to that law, a successor may be given if an ID is misplaced, stolen, or someone’s name, address, and driving restrictions change. So, the letter argued that replacing the permit for a change in gender identification is illegal.
It is questionable whether persons who had already changed their gender on their license can renew their current certificates as is because different areas of the laws in Florida deal with permit “renewals” and “replacements.” The office did not respond to PolitiFact’s inquiries regarding upgrades.
Note asserts the description of “gender” and issues a warning about fraud penalties.
The last two paragraphs of the memo drew the attention of LGBTQ+ activists. It stated:
Furthermore, the term “gender” in s. 322.08, F. S., has historically and widely been understood as a synonym for “sex,” which is determined by innate and immutable biological and genetic characteristics, rather than referring to ‘a person’s internal sense of his or her gender role or identification.
What Kynoch based this explanation of “gender” on is questionable.
A child’s whole name, Social Security number evidence, mailing address, and other details must be included on a registration application, according to the section of the law his memo cited. The phrase is never defined in and of itself.
The department’s director, Molly Best, did not respond to our inquiries regarding the origin of the definition.
The “M” / “F” field is marked with the term “sex” on Florida’s physical license. However, the term “gender” is used in the rules on licenses to define the requirements on a passport application.
Berta Esperanza Hernández-Truyol, a laws professor at the University of Florida, challenged the view. While agencies do issue regulations, she said, it is very probably outside of their purview to reinterpret statutory law on their own. Particularly with the attempted redefinition of “gender,” which has a different meaning from “sex” in terms of art.
The memo was criticized as “creating a definition that doesn’t exist” in the statute by attorney Simone Chriss, who also served as the Southern Legal Counsel’s director of the Transgender Rights Initiative. Chriss’ law firm is suing Florida for other anti-EQL+ laws, such as the state’s limitations on gender-affirming care and rules regarding the use of pronouns that don’t correspond to biological sex.
The position Legislature considers H. B. as the law change occurs. 1639 as well as H. B. Bills that would define that a child’s “sex” is reflected in their license number 1233.
The definition of “sex” in the bills is “the categorization of a human person as either male or female based on how their bodies are organized for their particular reproductive role.”
According to the letter, “misrepresenting one’s identity, understood as intercourse, on a vehicle registration constitutes fraud” and “subjects an individual to criminal and civil penalties, including cancellation, suspension, or revocation of his or her driver license.”
For criminal charges may not be used or enforced in certain situations. How would it affect transgender people, for instance, if their licenses were now altered to reflect their identity? Would there be repercussions for those who use main documents that have already undergone legal changes to reflect their gender identity when applying for new certificates?
Concerning this section of the note, the company remained silent. According to legal professionals cited by PolitiFact, people whose licenses were changed prior to the letter should not be subject to fraud charges.
What does Florida’s shift mean for those who are applying for fresh licenses? It’s unclear.
According to Best, the procedure for “establishing identity” on a new Florida passport or ID was unaffected by the plan. Residents may bring at least one key identification document when applying for a fresh Florida registration, such as their card, birth certificate, or certificate of citizenship. The technical advice that was distributed with the letter stated that gender “must be taken from a major identification document.”
Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles is the cause.
However, people have the option to change the gender that appears on U.S. passports and, in some states, on birth certificates, which raises the question of how this complies with the document’s claim that “misrepresenting one’s sex… constitutes fraud.”
In response to PolitiFact’s inquiries, Best responded, “In Florida, you do not find to execute identity politics with your driver license,” and that “to obtain a license… requires sufficient proof of identity, including your natural sex.”
Best referred us to a division site that details the paperwork required to obtain driver’s licenses. The law demands “satisfactory” identification documentation, which includes a title and gender. Nonetheless, we were unable to find any proof that Florida law calls for identification of one’s natural sex in order to obtain a new ID or certificate.
The relevance for people who are transgender.
The Florida Highway Safety Department’s shift, according to LGBTQ+ activists, may jeopardize the protection of transgender people and expose them to prejudice or discrimination.
According to Rodrigo Heng-Lehtinen, senior director of the National Center for Transgender Equality, “If you don’t update the gender symbol on your ID, you are essentially identified as trans at every change.” This may occur when you interact with potential landlords, employers, tellers, waitstaff, restaurant servers, and other parties.
You run the risk of being discriminated against by neighbors on a regular basis, according to Heng-Lehtinen.
Advocates claimed that if a person presents an ID that doesn’t match how they appear or refer to themselves, they run the risk of being asked intrusive personal questions during job interviews or being stopped by the police to determine whether their ID is fraudulent.
Most states have a system for changing the “M” or “F” on licenses, but states like Iowa are considering passing legislation to limit that, according to the Movement Advancement Project, an independent think tank that monitors LGBTQ+ policies. Other states are thinking about passing legislation that would fully identify “sex” and “gender” or prohibit people from changing their birth certificates to reveal their gender.
