K-12 public schools that violate the federal law, banning sex discrimination, already risk losing federal funding. Under the new amendment, schools would also risk losing federal funds if they allow “a person whose sex is male to participate in an athletic program or activity that is designated for women or girls.”

“Today is a great day in America because House Republicans just passed Rep. Greg Steuben’s Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, ensuring men cannot compete in women’s sports,” House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters after the vote.

“Men are men, women are women, and men cannot become women. It’s just that simple,” Johnson said.

Republican Rep. Steube of Florida said during floor debate ahead of Tuesday’s vote, “An overwhelming majority of Americans believe that men don’t belong in women’s sports and that we must allow common sense to prevail.”

“The distinction between men and women is clear and evident, and the erasure of this division has been promulgated by those in the radical left who seek to dismantle the core foundation of our society,” Steube added. “We must never let our country and the American way of life surrender to this immoral ideology.”

Democrats, who dubbed the bill the “Child Predator Empowerment Act,” claimed the measure would allow for intrusive genital examinations of girls.

“We’re already seeing examples of harassment and questioning of girls who may not conform to stereotypical feminine roles,” Democratic Rep. Suzanne Bonamici of Oregon claimed.

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., said she also voted “No.”

“A new low: The House just voted on a bill to subject young girls to invasive questions about their bodies and physical inspections by adult strangers,” Omar claimed in a post on X following Tuesday’s vote.

“The House GOP’s Child Predator Empowerment Act will endanger children across the country,” Omar said.

“Members of Congress are the last people who should decide who gets to play sports in America,” Democratic Rep. Lori Trahan told lawmakers from the House floor Tuesday before the vote. “That’s why I’m voting ‘no’ on House Republicans’ bill to force a federal takeover of sports at all levels.”

Trahan, who acknowledged concerns about the safety and fairness of women’s athletics, is the only woman in Congress to have played Division 1 sports in college.

While two Democrats voted in favor of the bill and another voted “present,” some moderate Democrats — who voted against the bill Tuesday — have voiced concerns about transgender athletes competing in women’s sports following Democratic losses in November.

“Democrats spend way too much time trying not to offend anyone rather than being brutally honest about the challenges many Americans face,” Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., told the New York Times two days after the election.

“I have two little girls,” Moulton added. “I don’t want them getting run over on a playing field by a male or formerly male athlete, but as a Democrat I’m supposed to be afraid to say that.”

Swimmer Riley Gaines, who shared a locker room and tied for fifth place with a transgender competitor at an NCAA freestyle swimming championship in 2022, applauded Tuesday’s vote, calling it a “great day on the Hill.”

The “Protection of Women and Girls Sports Act” now moves to the Senate.