A federal judge has decided to temporarily block parts of a law banning people from using bathrooms for people the opposite sex in Idaho’s public spaces that comes into effect on July 1.
The law bans the use of bathrooms, change rooms, or showers in spaces open to the public that do not match an individual’s sex at birth. Violations are punishable by up to one year in prison and up to five years for repeat offenders. There are exceptions for cleaners, coaches, legal guardians, minors, and those rendering medical, law enforcement, or emergency aid.
The law also has exemptions allowing for the use of single-user facilities of the opposite sex if no others are “reasonably available,” and in instances of “dire need” when no other facilities are reasonably available.
Supporters of the law said it was a necessary step to make public bathrooms safer and prevent sexual assault or voyeurism in women’s restrooms by biological men.
In May, the plaintiffs filed for a preliminary injunction to partially maintain the status quo in cases in which single-user facilities were not available as an option for people who identify as transgender.
“It does not identify any objective benchmark, specify what evidence may establish such a need, or explain how an officer is to assess whether the exception applies,” she wrote. “Instead, enforcement largely depends on an officer’s subjective assessment of an individual’s physical condition at a particular moment.”
That finding alone was sufficient, she said, to override the state’s public safety arguments and issue an injunction without yet considering plaintiffs’ privacy and equal protection claims.
Although the judge agreed with the state that it was a valid interest in “promoting bodily privacy and protecting women and children in public restrooms from those who may seek to do harm,” she said those concerns can be addressed through existing criminal laws “without infringing upon plaintiffs’ constitutional rights.”
As a result, she approved the requested partial block. The block allows individuals to continue using single-user facilities of the opposite sex and multi-user facilities of the opposite sex in cases in which no single-user facilities are available for use on the same floor, while the legal challenge is pending.
American Civil Liberties Union of Idaho Legal Director Paul Carlos Southwick applauded the decision.
“This ruling means trans folks in Idaho can continue participating in public life without the threat of being arrested for using the bathroom,” he said in a statement. “Trans Idahoans have been understandably anxious about the disruption this unconstitutional law would cause in their daily lives.”
Kell Olson, another attorney for the plaintiffs with Lambda Legal, said: “The court recognized that threat in providing relief to plaintiffs today. This ruling will allow transgender people throughout Idaho to find and use a public restroom, without the fear of arrest looming over them, while we continue the longer fight to permanently defeat this discriminatory law in court.”
Idaho Attorney General Raúl R. Labrador responded with a statement on X, saying his office will lodge an appeal of the decision.
“This is a results-driven decision that misapplies the law, confuses the issues, and misrepresents the position of the State,” he wrote.
“Biological sex is not vague, and neither is this law.
“The good news is that this ruling is narrow. Idaho’s law remains enforceable in most settings, including changing rooms and many restrooms. The injunction applies only in limited circumstances and to certain people.”
Separate laws banning opposite-sex use of bathrooms in Idaho public schools and college campuses remain in effect. Under those laws, the institutions failing to enforce the ban may be sued for $5,000 in the event of a violation.
A lawsuit challenging the school ban was voluntarily dismissed by the plaintiffs in May, while a legal challenge to the college ban is ongoing.
Idaho is one of 21 states and one territory to have passed similar bans, according to a tally by the Movement Advancement Project, a nonprofit think tank.
The Idaho measure is among the broadest in the country because it applies to private businesses as well as government facilities. Most other states’ laws have been narrower, limited to schools or government buildings, according to the think tank.
