Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed a bill into law Thursday that prevents transgender girls from competing in female sports.
The Republican went into detail about the law during a signing event on Thursday.
"It requires schools at all levels to designate sporting events as male, female, or co-ed," Reynolds said. "Only students who are female according to their birth certificate will be eligible to compete in girl sports. Nothing could be more straightforward and common sense."
Transgender activists claim the new law is discriminatory.
"Transgendered Iowans matter. They're here, they're not going away and this fight is not over," said Becky Smith, executive director of Iowa Safe Schools, a nonprofit organization that says it helps students who face bullying. "We know that students are going to be put at risk because of this bill, and it's unfair and it's also against the law."
The law takes effect immediately.
According to NPR, ten other states have transgender sports bans— many of which are caught up in lawsuits.
