How realistic are "revert gender markers" orders?
March 14, 2025 11:17 AM Subscribe
I am curious about how practicable "revert gender marker" orders are, such as the one issued by the Texas attorney general? How trivial/non-trivial would it be for a state ID database, for example, to find these cases?
I'm curious about this in part because I have a number of trans family members, whose gender markers on birth certificates, driver's licenses, passports, and so on were changed anywhere from four to thirty years ago. Does the secretary of state (I'm in Michigan, other places have DMVs) maintain a database in such a way that people whose gender markers have changed could be easily found?
I'm trying to pay attention to the difference between "what they are threatening to do" and "what can actually be done," so any insight you have on this would be helpful, especially if you have actual knowledge of a database of this kind.
I'm curious about this in part because I have a number of trans family members, whose gender markers on birth certificates, driver's licenses, passports, and so on were changed anywhere from four to thirty years ago. Does the secretary of state (I'm in Michigan, other places have DMVs) maintain a database in such a way that people whose gender markers have changed could be easily found?
I'm trying to pay attention to the difference between "what they are threatening to do" and "what can actually be done," so any insight you have on this would be helpful, especially if you have actual knowledge of a database of this kind.
(As I'm reading more about this, I'm seeing some sources describe what Paxton said as a "non-binding opinion." If that's accurate, then that's another reason for hope.
Still. My answer is still "We should assume they could really be able to do this and plan accordingly.")
posted by Birds, snakes, and aeroplanes at 12:11 PM on March 14 [1 favorite]
Still. My answer is still "We should assume they could really be able to do this and plan accordingly.")
posted by Birds, snakes, and aeroplanes at 12:11 PM on March 14 [1 favorite]
IMO, assuming such action is declared legal, it would be expensive and time consuming to do this for already changed identification but might be more easily done going forward.
In large part, it depends on how the data was initially entered and how much work it would take to pull it. Presuming gender/sex (sex is the term on the Texas driver license) is a separately entered field, then it's just coding to pull those files which were reissued due to gender/sex changes (probably by comparing original field vs reissued field), but someone would still have to review each one for the reason why the change was made: error on original vs change in identity. So this may also depend on what kind of notes were kept or if they'd contact those persons to verify the reason etc. If gender/sex changes cannot be pulled independently, then it gets more reliant on manual review.
What's the plan/funding for what to do with this information? Does the state automatically mail out new ones at no charge? Send you a letter saying your ID is invalid? Even those now living in different states, those who cannot be located or are deceased?
Whether different nations/states or organizations would cross-reference each other or impact each other, is much more complex and could depend on if this is national or state driven and the impact on downstream organizations. For instance, if passports issued by the USA government must match the birth certificate and the birth certificate has been changed, then how much further does the law allow to dig? Second instance, if an individual state decides driver's license must match birth certificate, then does the passport also need updated? What if a person moves states and continues to use the previous state's identification? I know people who have taken years to update identification when they move. Third instance, if the nationally issued passport must match state-level identification or your second passport, does California or other nations care? The airlines might care depending on how TSA etc reacts and which you use for identification when traveling.
posted by beaning at 12:12 PM on March 14
In large part, it depends on how the data was initially entered and how much work it would take to pull it. Presuming gender/sex (sex is the term on the Texas driver license) is a separately entered field, then it's just coding to pull those files which were reissued due to gender/sex changes (probably by comparing original field vs reissued field), but someone would still have to review each one for the reason why the change was made: error on original vs change in identity. So this may also depend on what kind of notes were kept or if they'd contact those persons to verify the reason etc. If gender/sex changes cannot be pulled independently, then it gets more reliant on manual review.
What's the plan/funding for what to do with this information? Does the state automatically mail out new ones at no charge? Send you a letter saying your ID is invalid? Even those now living in different states, those who cannot be located or are deceased?
Whether different nations/states or organizations would cross-reference each other or impact each other, is much more complex and could depend on if this is national or state driven and the impact on downstream organizations. For instance, if passports issued by the USA government must match the birth certificate and the birth certificate has been changed, then how much further does the law allow to dig? Second instance, if an individual state decides driver's license must match birth certificate, then does the passport also need updated? What if a person moves states and continues to use the previous state's identification? I know people who have taken years to update identification when they move. Third instance, if the nationally issued passport must match state-level identification or your second passport, does California or other nations care? The airlines might care depending on how TSA etc reacts and which you use for identification when traveling.
posted by beaning at 12:12 PM on March 14
Yes to beaning's point, and on top of that, if they wanted to track you down and confiscate the old IDs preemptively, that would be a really impractical amount of work.
It's more likely that you'll have your marker reverted when you renew your license, as is happening with passports, or maybe have your license flagged to be taken away if you happen to get pulled over.
Which is upsetting enough. But for what it's worth, it's hard to imagine a scenario where the state is hunting you down and snatching your DL out of your hands — not because Texas is a benevolent constitution-abiding paradise, but because Texas can't afford that sort of police overtime.
posted by Birds, snakes, and aeroplanes at 1:30 PM on March 14 [2 favorites]
It's more likely that you'll have your marker reverted when you renew your license, as is happening with passports, or maybe have your license flagged to be taken away if you happen to get pulled over.
Which is upsetting enough. But for what it's worth, it's hard to imagine a scenario where the state is hunting you down and snatching your DL out of your hands — not because Texas is a benevolent constitution-abiding paradise, but because Texas can't afford that sort of police overtime.
posted by Birds, snakes, and aeroplanes at 1:30 PM on March 14 [2 favorites]
Presuming gender/sex (sex is the term on the Texas driver license) is a separately entered field, then it's just coding to pull those files which were reissued due to gender/sex changes (probably by comparing original field vs reissued field), but someone would still have to review each one for the reason why the change was made: error on original vs change in identity.
Without disputing that there are practical limits to changing gender markers en masse, there is no reason why they have to actually review the reason for the change. They could choose to assume there are no errors and put the responsibility on the individual to prove they are not trans. It’s probably not common enough to cause a political problem for Republicans.
posted by plonkee at 6:46 AM on March 16 [1 favorite]
Without disputing that there are practical limits to changing gender markers en masse, there is no reason why they have to actually review the reason for the change. They could choose to assume there are no errors and put the responsibility on the individual to prove they are not trans. It’s probably not common enough to cause a political problem for Republicans.
posted by plonkee at 6:46 AM on March 16 [1 favorite]
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For example, we know that when people changed their passport gender, the passport office kept track of their previous gender marker. (We know this because they're now using that information to revert those gender markers — only when people renew their passport, but still, they're doing it.)
The Texas DMV probably doesn't have access to the federal passport office's records. But they may have kept similar records of their own. After all, we just concluded that it's not unheard-of.
So. We should assume that they have the information they'd need to follow through on this order.
Now. There's another complicating factor. The order is basically guaranteed to be challenged in court. Not only is it discriminatory, it's also a constitutional shitshow, since the AG is declaring a ton of court orders invalid. Even a court that isn't especially trans-friendly could well come back and say "No, sorry, one bureaucrat can't just overrule hundreds of judges like that, this isn't a valid procedure to follow." I think that's the outcome we should hope for, and I think it's a real possibility.
posted by Birds, snakes, and aeroplanes at 12:05 PM on March 14 [2 favorites]