California Bans Travel To 5 States With New Anti-LGBT Laws

California added five more states to the state-sponsored travel ban list imposed due to newly enacted discriminatory laws against LGBT community members.

The list now contains 17 different states – Florida, Montana, Arkansas, West Virginia and North Dakota being the newest additions – where California state employees are prohibited from traveling for work to unless specified as essential travel. These states recently passed legislation restricting the rights of people in the LGBT community.

Laws passed in Florida, Montana, Arkansas and West Virginia prevent transgender females from athletically competing in school sports as their identifying gender.

Another law in North Dakota allows student organizations to deny membership to students who identify as part of the LGBT community and not be penalized for it.

Arkansas recently passed a law that blocks transgender minors’ access to healthcare by forbidding physicians from giving gender-affirming procedures to minors, regardless whether it is found medically necessary or if parent or guardian permission was given.

The list of banned states was put into place in 2016 and originally had Alabama, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee and Texas. These states were deemed as enforcing discriminatory laws against members of the LGBT community.

California’s Attorney General Rob Bonta (D) made it clear that his state “is not going to support…[the] unprecedented wave of bigotry and discrimination” focused at gay and trans communities around the United States.

Necessary travel includes trips used to enforce California law and trips based on contracts signed prior to the newly released list of states the travel ban affects.