US states have already tabled over 360 anti-LGBTQ+ bills in the first month of 2026

Anti-LGBTQ+ politicians in the US have already proposed over 360 homophobic and transphobic laws in the first month of 2026 alone.

An actively updated tracker, created by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), has already recorded at least 366 anti-LGBTQ+ bills tabled across 36 US states since the beginning of the year, despite most Americans thinking the current government has issues with transphobia.

Over the past few years, US state legislatures have become a key battleground in efforts by Republican lawmakers to attack LGBTQ+ rights.

Since 2023, lawmakers have submitted over 2,000 statewide laws targeting the community’s rights, according to the ACLU. Just over half of those bills have been defeated, while an estimated 211 have passed into law.

READ MORE: Pride 2025 was one of the most dangerous in US history, report reveals

The bills include, but aren’t limited to, restrictions on free speech, censorship of LGBTQ+ books and school curriculum, and policies forcing schools to out trans students to their parents. Many of these laws are typically state-specific clones of other bills tabled elsewhere in the US.

Several states have also passed laws banning potentially life-saving gender-affirming treatment for trans under-18s. As of July 2025, over 40 per cent of all trans youngsters in American aged 13-17 live in one of the 27 states that ban treatment.

At least 96 bills proposed this year heavily restrict healthcare for LGBTQ+ people on some level. One of them, a senate bill submitted in Oklahoma, would completely ban certain kinds of gender-affirming treatments in the state.

The ACLU said it will “not stop speaking out” against these anti-LGBTQ+ bills, which they branded as “cruel”.

“LGBTQ+ people have a right to live in safety, to thrive, and to be treated with dignity,” they said in a statement on the tracker’s overview page.

Last year saw a record-breaking number of anti-LGBTQ+ bills tabled in all but two US states, with 616 laws tracked overall. Seventy-four of those laws passed into law, including an Arkansas law which allows religious organisations and groups to discriminate against people based on their sexuality or gender identity.

Attacks against the community have only worsened following the inauguration of US president Donald Trump, who has signed a swathe of executive orders targeting LGBTQ+ rights federally.

A report from GLAAD published this week found that anti-LGBTQ+ incidents, such as vandalism and violent assaults, rose by 5 per cent in the US last year.

Pride month in 2025 was one of the deadliest in the country’s history with over 268 anti-LGBTQ+ incidents across the country – a 400 per cent increase compared to previous years.

The organisation’s CEO, Sarah Kate Ellis, called on politicians to stop fuelling hatred against the community and instead recognise every American’s right to “freedom, fairness, and safety.”

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