PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Congressional Research Service
No official summary is available in the imported record yet.
People & committees
Rep. Mace, Nancy [R-SC-1] · R–SC
Legislative record
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Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
Text links open the official source. We also preserved the text version used in the PlainBill explanation below.
No related bills are listed in this snapshot. This does not establish whether the proposal has appeared in earlier Congresses.
Source last updated: Apr 11, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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PlainBill explanation
Based on the full Introduced in House · 2025-02-05 text. This explanation has not received human editorial review. This overview describes the proposal’s major provisions; it does not establish what its real-world effects would be.
This bill would require the federal Bureau of Prisons to house and transport prisoners only with other prisoners of the same biological sex, as the bill defines it. It would also prohibit the Bureau from providing or paying for medical treatment intended to address a person's perception that their sex or gender differs from that classification. Certain treatments for sex-development conditions and medical complications would be excluded from that prohibition. These are proposed changes, not evidence of enacted law.
Section 3621 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Bureau of Prisons— (1) shall ensure that a prisoner is placed, during that prisoner’s term of imprisonment, only among prisoners of the same biological sex as the prisoner; (2) shall ensure that a prisoner, when transported in the company of other prisoners, is only transported among prisoners of the same biological sex as the prisoner; and (3) may not furnish or pay for any gender-related medical treatment.
(B) does not include any medical treament performed on an individual for the purposes of treating— (i) a disorder of sex development, diagnosed by a physician after such physician has determined through genetic or biochemical testing that such individual does not have normal sex chromosome structure, sex steroid hormone production, or sex steroid hormone action; (ii) irresolvably ambiguous biological sex characteristics of such individual, including the presence of— (I) 46 XX chromosomes with virilization; (II) 46 XY chromosomes with undervirilization; or (III) both ovarian and testicular tissue; or (iii) an infection, injury, disease, or disorder caused or exacerbated by gender-related medical treatment that was furnished to an individual.
Section 1 would name the bill the Prison Rape Prevention Act of 2025. The title does not establish what effects the proposed rules would have.
1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Prison Rape Prevention Act of 2025.
Section 2 would add housing, transportation and medical-treatment restrictions to federal prison law. It directs the Bureau of Prisons to apply them despite any other provision of law. The housing rule would apply throughout a prisoner's term; the transportation rule would apply whenever a prisoner travels with other prisoners.
Section 3621 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following: (j) Rules for housing or transportation based on gender; limitation on gender-Affirming care Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Bureau of Prisons— (1) shall ensure that a prisoner is placed, during that prisoner’s term of imprisonment, only among prisoners of the same biological sex as the prisoner; (2) shall ensure that a prisoner, when transported in the company of other prisoners, is only transported among prisoners of the same biological sex as the prisoner; and (3) may not furnish or pay for any gender-related medical treatment.
The bill would define biological sex as male or female based on reproductive systems associated with eggs or sperm. Its definitions include systems a person previously had, will have, or would have except for a developmental or genetic anomaly or historical accident; they do not require current reproductive capacity.
(1) Biological sex The term biological sex means the biological determination as to whether an individual is male or female. (2) Female The term female means an individual who naturally has, had, will have, or would have, but for a developmental or genetic anomaly or historical accident, the reproductive system that at some point produces, transports, and utilizes eggs for fertilization. (3) Male The term male means an individual who naturally has, had, will have, or would have, but for a developmental or genetic anomaly or historical accident, the reproductive system that at some point produces, transports, and utilizes sperm for fertilization.
For these rules, the bill would define gender as a synonym for sex and expressly exclude gender identity, experienced gender, gender expression and gender roles from that meaning. Its additional wording about males, females and their natural differences includes a qualification for uses that are otherwise specified or stand alone.
(4) Gender The term gender— (A) means— (i) males, females, or the natural differences between males and females, unless such term is otherwise specified or used alone (rather than with or as an adjective modifying other words); and (ii) a synonym for sex; and (B) does not mean a synonym for terms or ideas such as gender identity, experienced gender, gender expression, or gender roles
The proposed medical ban depends on the purpose of treatment. For people the bill classifies as female, it covers treatment addressing a perception that their sex or gender is not female; for people it classifies as male, it covers the corresponding perception that their sex or gender is not male. Surgical procedures are included, so the restriction is not limited to medication.
(3) may not furnish or pay for any gender-related medical treatment.
(i) with respect to a female individual, medical treatments provided for purposes of addressing the perception of such individual that the gender or sex of such individual is not female, including— (I) surgical procedures
(ii) with respect to a male individual, medical treatments provided for purposes of addressing the perception of such individual that the gender or sex of such individual is not male, including— (I) surgical procedures
When provided for those specified purposes, the covered medications would include externally supplied testosterone or other androgen hormones for people classified as female, and externally supplied estrogen for people classified as male. Both lists also include puberty blockers—drugs that suppress sex-hormone production or delay or suppress puberty.
(i) with respect to a female individual, medical treatments provided for purposes of addressing the perception of such individual that the gender or sex of such individual is not female
(II) exogenous doses of testosterone or other androgens; (III) puberty blockers, including— (aa) GnRH agonists; and (bb) synthetic drugs that suppress the production of estrogen and progesterone or delay or suppress pubertal development in female individuals
(ii) with respect to a male individual, medical treatments provided for purposes of addressing the perception of such individual that the gender or sex of such individual is not male
(II) exogenous doses of estrogen; (III) puberty blockers, including— (aa) GnRH agonists; and (bb) synthetic drugs that suppress the production of testosterone or delay or suppress pubertal development in male individuals
The listed treatments would not be exhaustive. The Director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons could identify additional medical treatments provided for the same specified purposes as covered by the definition.
(IV) such other medical treatment, identified by the Director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, that may be provided for purposes of addressing the perception of such individual that the gender or sex of such individual is not female
(IV) such other medical treatment, identified by the Director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, that may be provided for purposes of addressing the perception of such individual that the gender or sex of such individual is not male
The medical prohibition would exclude treatment for certain sex-development conditions. One exception requires a physician's diagnosis supported by genetic or biochemical testing of chromosomes, sex-hormone production or hormone action. Another covers biological sex characteristics that cannot be resolved as unambiguously male or female, including the specified chromosome and reproductive-tissue conditions.
(B) does not include any medical treament performed on an individual for the purposes of treating— (i) a disorder of sex development, diagnosed by a physician after such physician has determined through genetic or biochemical testing that such individual does not have normal sex chromosome structure, sex steroid hormone production, or sex steroid hormone action; (ii) irresolvably ambiguous biological sex characteristics of such individual, including the presence of— (I) 46 XX chromosomes with virilization; (II) 46 XY chromosomes with undervirilization; or (III) both ovarian and testicular tissue
Treatment of an infection, injury, disease or disorder caused or worsened by previously provided gender-related medical treatment would also be excluded from the prohibition. This exception removes such treatment from the ban; it does not itself require the Bureau to provide or pay for it.
(B) does not include any medical treament performed on an individual for the purposes of treating—
(iii) an infection, injury, disease, or disorder caused or exacerbated by gender-related medical treatment that was furnished to an individual.
The supplied official-actions snapshot, updated April 11, 2025, records introduction in the House and referral to the House Committee on the Judiciary on February 5, 2025. It does not establish what happened after that snapshot.
Source snapshot updated 2025-04-11T18:30:38Z. 2025-02-05: Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary. 2025-02-05: Introduced in House
A closer look
Reviewed version: Introduced in House · 2025-02-05. These findings describe provisions and who may benefit; they are not judgments of waste, corruption, or motive.
This review covers the supplied bill text. “None identified” does not rule out provisions in later versions or accompanying reports and disclosures.
Provisions outside the bill’s main subject, or policy changes attached to appropriations.
None identified in the reviewed text
No unrelated provision or policy change attached to appropriations was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion does not establish the absence of riders in other versions or accompanying materials.
Spending directed to particular recipients or places outside ordinary competitive or formula-based allocation.
None identified in the reviewed text
No congressionally directed spending for a particular recipient or place was identified in the complete supplied introduced text. This conclusion is limited to that version and does not establish formal earmark status in materials not supplied.
Narrow exceptions, exemptions, or preferential treatment that warrant a closer look.
Findings to examine
The supplied text contains narrow medical exceptions to its proposed treatment prohibition. These are directly related to the main policy; identifying them does not imply they are unjustified.
People receiving treatment for qualifying sex-development conditions would receive an exception to the proposed medical ban. The exception covers physician-diagnosed disorders supported by specified testing and irresolvably ambiguous biological sex characteristics.
(3) may not furnish or pay for any gender-related medical treatment.
(B) does not include any medical treament performed on an individual for the purposes of treating— (i) a disorder of sex development, diagnosed by a physician after such physician has determined through genetic or biochemical testing that such individual does not have normal sex chromosome structure, sex steroid hormone production, or sex steroid hormone action; (ii) irresolvably ambiguous biological sex characteristics of such individual, including the presence of— (I) 46 XX chromosomes with virilization; (II) 46 XY chromosomes with undervirilization; or (III) both ovarian and testicular tissue
People with medical conditions caused or worsened by previously furnished gender-related medical treatment would have treatment of those conditions excluded from the proposed ban. This is an exception to the restriction, not an independent guarantee of treatment or payment.
(3) may not furnish or pay for any gender-related medical treatment.
(B) does not include any medical treament performed on an individual for the purposes of treating—
(iii) an infection, injury, disease, or disorder caused or exacerbated by gender-related medical treatment that was furnished to an individual.
Full text preserved for this analysis. Legislative record snapshot: Apr 11, 2025. How PlainBill uses AI