Gay and Trans Panic Defense Prohibition Act of 2021
Latest action · Oct 19, 2021 Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedApr 16, 2021
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Gay and Trans Panic Defense Prohibition Act of 2021
This bill generally prohibits a federal criminal defendant from asserting, as a defense, that the nonviolent sexual advance of an individual or a perception or belief of the gender, gender identify or expression, or sexual orientation of an individual excuses or justifies conduct or mitigates the severity of an offense.
Cosponsors 68
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Apr 16, 2021 to Dec 21, 2022; 21 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-CA | Alan S. Lowenthal | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-IN | André Carson | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-NH | Ann M. Kuster | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-CA | Anna G. Eshoo | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-CA | Barbara Lee | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-FL | Charlie Crist | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-WA | Derek Kilmer | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-OR | Earl Blumenauer | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-DC | Eleanor Holmes Norton | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-NJ | Frank Pallone, Jr. | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-CT | Jahana Hayes | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-IL | Janice D. Schakowsky | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-CA | Jim Costa | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-CA | Karen Bass | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-FL | Kathy Castor | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-CA | Linda T. Sánchez | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-WA | Marilyn Strickland | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-CA | Mark DeSaulnier | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-PA | Mary Gay Scanlon | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-IL | Mike Quigley | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-NY | Ritchie Torres | Original | Apr 16, 2021 |
| D-FL | Darren Soto | May 28, 2021 | |
| D-NM | Melanie A. Stansbury | Jul 16, 2021 | |
| D-VT | Peter Welch | Sep 14, 2021 | |
| D-NJ | Mikie Sherrill | Nov 1, 2021 | |
| D-MA | Jake Auchincloss | Nov 2, 2021 | |
| D-NJ | Donald M. Payne, Jr. | Nov 30, 2021 | |
| D-MA | James P. McGovern | Feb 2, 2022 | |
| D-KS | Sharice Davids | Feb 2, 2022 | |
| D-NY | Carolyn B. Maloney | Feb 8, 2022 | |
| D-PA | Dwight Evans | Feb 11, 2022 | |
| D-CA | Mark Takano | Feb 11, 2022 | |
| D-NY | Paul Tonko | Feb 11, 2022 | |
| D-AZ | Raúl M. Grijalva | Feb 11, 2022 | |
| D-MA | Stephen F. Lynch | Feb 11, 2022 | |
| D-OR | Suzanne Bonamici | Feb 11, 2022 | |
| D-MN | Ilhan Omar | Feb 28, 2022 | |
| D-HI | Kaiali'i Kahele | Feb 28, 2022 | |
| D-MN | Dean Phillips | May 6, 2022 | |
| D-FL | Debbie Wasserman Schultz | May 6, 2022 | |
| D-NY | Sean Patrick Maloney | May 6, 2022 | |
| D-MA | Seth Moulton | May 6, 2022 | |
| D-CA | Zoe Lofgren | May 6, 2022 | |
| D-NY | Adriano Espaillat | Jun 3, 2022 | |
| D-NC | Alma S. Adams | Jun 3, 2022 | |
| D-MA | Ayanna Pressley | Jun 3, 2022 | |
| D-NJ | Bonnie Watson Coleman | Jun 3, 2022 | |
| D-RI | David N. Cicilline | Jun 3, 2022 | |
| D-CA | Sara Jacobs | Jun 3, 2022 | |
| D-CA | Scott H. Peters | Jun 3, 2022 | |
| D-FL | Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick | Jun 3, 2022 | |
| D-NJ | Tom Malinowski | Jun 3, 2022 | |
| D-CA | Tony Cárdenas | Jun 3, 2022 | |
| D-MN | Angie Craig | Jun 7, 2022 | |
| D-NY | Grace Meng | Jun 7, 2022 | |
| D-CO | Joe Neguse | Jun 7, 2022 | |
| D-MA | Katherine M. Clark | Jun 7, 2022 | |
| D-IL | Raja Krishnamoorthi | Jun 7, 2022 | |
| D-MI | Rashida Tlaib | Jun 7, 2022 | |
| D-CA | Ro Khanna | Jun 7, 2022 | |
| D-NY | Brian Higgins | Jun 21, 2022 | |
| D-KY | John A. Yarmuth | Jun 21, 2022 | |
| D-IL | Marie Newman | Jun 21, 2022 | |
| D-NY | Mondaire Jones | Jul 15, 2022 | |
| D-AL | Terri A. Sewell | Jul 15, 2022 | |
| D-TX | Lizzie Fletcher | Sep 13, 2022 | |
| D-WI | Mark Pocan | Sep 13, 2022 | |
| D-GA | Nikema Williams | Dec 21, 2022 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Judiciary Committee | Referred Apr 16, 2021 |
| Crime and Federal Government Surveillance Subcommittee | Referred Oct 19, 2021 |
Actions 3
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Oct 19, 2021Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.
- Apr 16, 2021Introduced in House
- Apr 16, 2021Referred to the House Committee on the Judiciary.
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 167, no. 66, April 16, 2021, page H1891.
Related bills 2
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| S 1137 | Gay and Trans Panic Defense Prohibition Act of 2021 | Identical bill | Apr 15, 2021 |
| S 2201 | LGBTQ+ Panic Defense Prohibition Act of 2025 | Cross-Congress related bill | Jun 27, 2025 |
Titles 2
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To amend title 18, United States Code, to prohibit gay and trans panic defenses.
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- Gay and Trans Panic Defense Prohibition Act of 2021
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement.
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Apr 16, 2021Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
