Wisconsin bill would allow sex changes on birth certificates

Wisconsin lawmakers are pushing bills to block changes to gender markers on birth certificates, prohibiting updates to anything other than a person's biological sex as defined by chromosomes. The Wisconsin State Legislature introduced **AB 311** and **SB 312** in the 2025-26 session, which would end the current process allowing amendments after surgical sex-change procedures via court order.[3][5] Advocacy groups like Fair Wisconsin and the ACLU of Wisconsin have testified against the measures, calling them discriminatory.[1][5]

Currently, Wisconsin issues amended birth certificates for gender changes with a court order, a notarized doctor's letter confirming surgery, and required forms from the Office of Vital Records.[2][4] These bills would override that, barring courts from ordering such changes and limiting updates to error corrections only.[3] As of mid-2025, the bills remained introduced without passage, despite committee hearings.[1][5][7]

For Milwaukee residents, this debate hits close to home amid rising tensions over transgender rights. Local LGBTQ+ communities, including those served by groups like Fair Wisconsin, fear it could complicate access to IDs and heighten discrimination in employment, healthcare, and daily life in a diverse city like Milwaukee.[1][5]

Next steps include ongoing Assembly Judiciary Committee reviews, with potential floor votes in the Republican-controlled Legislature determining if the ban becomes law.[1][7]