OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – A binding agreement has been filed with the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office not to enforce Senate Bill 613, pending resolution of plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction in challenge of the bill.

At the beginning of May, Governor Kevin Stitt signed Senate Bill 613, which prohibits any medication or surgery for the purpose of gender transition for minors. Sanctions for violating the bill include felony charges, license revocation and civil actions which can be filed by a parent or legal guardian.

The ACLU of Oklahoma, ACLU, Lambda Legal and Jenner & Block LLP released the following statement on Thursday regarding the agreement.

“We welcome this opportunity to preserve the rights of transgender adolescents and their families to access medically necessary health care while our challenge proceeds. SB 613 is a cruel intrusion by the state into the rights of families and their children’s doctors with grave costs for transgender adolescents across the state, and we remain confident the court will see through this unconstitutional attack on their rights and lives. We expect all state officials to abide by this agreement while our motion is pending and stand ready to hold the State accountable and defend the rights of all trans Oklahomans, should any enforcement of SB 613 occur.”

According to ACLU Oklahoma, some families with transgender youth as well as medical providers who support the healthcare filed a lawsuit challenging SB 613 because it “unjustly and unfairly targets them and the critical health care they need in violation of their rights under the Equal Protection Clause of the 14th Amendment.”

ACLU Oklahoma says with the non-enforcement agreement, transgender youth will continue to have access to care for gender dysphoria and medical providers will not need to worry about giving that care to their patients. 

The Attorney General’s office released this statement:

 “The attorney general’s office continues to fulfill its duty to defend Senate Bill 613. A temporary stay of enforcement simply allows more time to mount the strongest possible defense.”