DSHS secretly changes policy to deny gender marker changes on birth certificates
As of last Friday, Aug. 30, The Texas Department of State Health Services, following in the footsteps of the Texas Department of Public Safety Driver License Division, will no longer accept certified court orders to change gender markers on a person’s birth certificate, according to a report by KXAN.com.
As KXAN points out, Texas law allows changes to a birth certificate if the information on the birth certificate is proven “by satisfactory evidence to be inaccurate.” (Previously, a court order was “satisfactory evidence” for such a change.) But as KXAN also notes, Texas law doesn’t allow state agencies to make substantive policy changes without 30 days’ notice and a public comment period.
The DSHS change, confirmed by comparing archived copies of DSHS’ website to the current content of the website, was unannounced and there was, obviously, no public comment period.
On Aug. 20, DPS’ Driver License Division Chief Sheri Gipson announced in an email to employees that gender markers on driver licenses and state-issued ID cards would not be changed on the basis of a court order.
