State by State · Law protects girls’ sports in K-12 and colleges
Montana law has kept girls' teams in public K-12 schools for females since 2021. A 2025 law extends that protection to public colleges and to locker rooms, after a court ruled the 2021 law could not reach universities.
The law in Montana
Law in force · Covers K-12 and colleges
Past attempts
September 2022: a district court struck down HB 112 as applied to universities, and the Montana Supreme Court affirmed in April 2024 (source; source). May 2024: Gov. Gianforte asked the Board of Regents to adopt HB 112’s rules for colleges. There is no public record that it did (source).
The law in detail, with sources
The law
HB 112, the “Save Women’s Sports Act,” passed by the legislature and signed by Gov. Greg Gianforte in May 2021 (source). HB 300 (2025, sponsored by Rep. Kerri Seekins-Crowe) was signed March 27, 2025, and took effect October 1, 2025 (source; source; source).
Who it covers
HB 112 covers public K-12 schools. Its college portion was struck down (see Notes). HB 300 makes it discrimination for a public school or college to let a male compete in women’s and girls’ sports or use women’s and girls’ locker rooms (source).
Notes
On April 26, 2024, in Barrett v. Montana, the Montana Supreme Court held HB 112 unconstitutional as applied to colleges and universities, because it intruded on the Board of Regents’ authority. The law stays in force for K-12 (source; source). HB 300 was written to reach colleges by amending existing discrimination law rather than creating a standalone rule (source). As of the summer of 2026 it had not been challenged in court (source). A companion 2025 law on single-sex spaces, HB 121, has been blocked by a Missoula judge since April 2025, with a preliminary injunction issued in May 2025. Oral arguments were heard in August 2026 (source; source). HB 121 is not the sports law.
Athletes in ICONS-backed lawsuits
- Kiersten Van Kirk, volleyball, Boise State, from Montana · Slusser v. Mountain West
- Katelyn Van Kirk, volleyball, Boise State, from Montana · Slusser v. Mountain West