Washington’s fall ballot could feature a politically charged double-header that would reshape how schools handle student privacy and who gets to suit up on girls’ teams. One proposal would bar transgender girls from girls’ K-12 sports and add medical verification requirements to routine sports physicals. The other would bring back a sweeping “parents’ bill of rights” that gives guardians wider access to student records and school notifications. Sponsors have already turned in hundreds of thousands of petitions, and both measures are now parked in Olympia, waiting on lawmakers.
State elections officials have validated the signatures and delivered the initiatives to the Legislature. If lawmakers reject either measure or simply do nothing by the end of the 2026 legislative session on March 12, the secretary of state will send them on to the November ballot. According to the Washington Secretary of State, IL26-638 was certified in late January, and the office separately announced verification of IL26-001. That procedural clock is now the key factor in whether these fights get settled in the Legislature or by voters on Nov. 3, 2026.
What the sports measure would require
IL26-638, titled “Protecting Fairness in Girls’ Sports,” would bar students it defines as “biologically male” from playing on teams designated for female students and would fold a health care provider’s signed verification into the standard pre-participation sports physical. The sponsor’s description says that verification may rely “only on one or more of the following: the student’s reproductive anatomy, genetic makeup, or normal endogenously produced testosterone levels,” as outlined by Let’s Go Washington. Supporters argue the proposal is about competitive fairness, while critics warn it could turn routine school physicals into intrusive eligibility checks that discourage students from signing up at all.
What the parents' rights measure would do
IL26-001 would largely restore the language of Initiative 2081, setting out parental rights to review instructional materials, inspect broad categories of student records, receive advance notice when medical services are offered at school, and opt students out of some lessons. The proposal includes a narrow carve-out: schools would not have to release medical or counseling records to a parent who is the subject of an active child abuse or neglect investigation. Advocacy groups say that exception is small on paper but could be complicated to apply in real schools. The full measure text is available for review here.
Who’s backing the measures and who’s organizing to stop them
Let’s Go Washington, the initiative committee founded and bankrolled by Brian Heywood, is the organization behind both signature drives. On the other side, a coalition of civil rights and youth advocacy groups is gearing up to oppose the measures. The Gender Justice League has announced a six-figure commitment to the campaign, according to a press release on its site, and local coalitions including Washington Families for Freedom and Permanent Defense are coordinating volunteers and messaging.
“I am tired of political opportunists using trans people as a distraction,” Danni Askini, executive director of the Gender Justice League, told The Daily. Opponents also highlight some basic numbers: reporting and association estimates indicate that only a small number of transgender students are currently competing in public school sports statewide. Health care and education advocates warn that the initiatives could end up reducing access to school-based counseling and routine medical services, particularly for vulnerable students.
Legal and school-system implications
If either measure passes, school districts, athletic leagues, and health providers would be staring at a long list of operational and legal decisions. Lawmakers already revisited related policy in 2025 with House Bill 1296, which aimed to clarify student privacy rules and bring district practice in line with state guidance. The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction currently maintains model “gender-inclusive” guidance that districts use when handling student records and supports.
Federal law is also lurking in the background. Title IX enforcement and other federal actions have already pushed questions about gender, sports, and school records into courtrooms around the country, so additional litigation or federal review is a very real possibility if Washington’s rules change.
What’s next
Olympia has until March 12 to pass, amend, or reject the initiatives. If legislators sit on their hands, both are likely headed to the Nov. 3, 2026 general election ballot. Organizers working to defeat the measures frame the stakes in broad terms, especially for students who are already on the margins. National research groups estimate that LGBTQ youth are overrepresented among young people experiencing homelessness, a statistic advocates frequently cite when arguing that changes to school privacy and access to services could do real harm.
With signatures validated and the legislative clock ticking down, the fight over sports eligibility, student privacy, and parental authority is poised to jump from committee rooms to full-scale campaign mode.
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