I am a transgender Virginian and I began my transition about 7 years ago. In that time, I have been able to change my gender marker on my U.S. Passport and with the Virginia DMV. Despite being able to change my gender marker on those two important forms of identification, due to the unclear and complicated Virginia guidelines, my gender is not changed on my Virginia birth certificate, which leads to confusion and fear of being outed.

In scenarios in which I need to officially report my gender, I am never sure which gender I should indicate, since my documents conflict. For example, when I updated my voter registration last year, I marked my gender as male, which is the gender I identify as and the gender marked on my passport and license. However, I was extremely worried that because my gender marker was different on my birth certificate, I would be unable to vote. In the days leading up to the election, rather than researching candidates, I was researching whether or not anyone had been in my situation in regards to their gender markers, and if they had been able to vote. Luckily, I was able to vote, but this unnecessary stress could have been alleviated by clarifying and updating the Virginia birth certificate gender change process.

Voter registration is only one of many scenarios in which I have been worried about the incorrect gender marker on my birth certificate. I hope to go into the medical field, and have had a variety of internships, jobs, and volunteer positions which involve working in hospitals, doctor’s offices, or hospice facilities. These sorts of positions all require background checks, and every time I must undergo a background check, I am worried that there will be confusion or I will be outed because of the mismatch between my birth certificate and my other documents. I fear if I am outed, I may be denied the position I am applying for, or that people will ask me invasive questions or treat me differently. I should not have to deal with this fear when applying for jobs or volunteering.

Updating 12 VAC 5-500 will improve life for many Virginians by reducing the fear and stress caused by having a document with an incorrect gender marker.  Thank you for supporting updates to 12 VAC 5-550 which will make life easier and safer for me and numerous other Virginians.