Critics have blasted the bill as 'State-sanctioned kidnapping'
Maine residents ‘overwhelmed’ at prospect of becoming a 'transgender safe haven,' state lawmaker says
Maine Republican State Rep. Katrina Smith expresses concerns over a new push from state leaders to make the state a ‘transgender safe haven.’
A Maine lawmaker is sounding the alarm about a bill that would protect children traveling to the state to seek transgender treatments without parental consent.
"Maine is going to open the doors to this and open the door to kids who meet someone on TikTok and they get the idea that they need this surgery or hormone replacement therapy and they're going to grab a bus or someone is going to come pick them up and bring them to Maine and a parent is not going to do a thing about it," Republican State Rep. Katrina J. Smith warned on "Fox & Friends" on Friday.
The bill, called "An act to safeguard gender-affirming health care," was introduced by Rep. Laurie Osher (D-Orono). Under the law, teenagers from other states can receive hormonal treatments and surgery in Maine without parental consent. It also blocks law enforcement from reuniting parents with their children and grants the state temporary custody of these minors.
Critics go so far as to call it ‘state-sanctioned kidnapping,’" "Fox & Friends" host Steve Doocy remarked.
SOME NEW HAMPSHIRE RESIDENTS WORRIED AS MAINE CONSIDERS ‘TRANS TOURISM’ BILL FOR CHILDREN
Republican State Rep. Katrina J. Smith warned of a new bill that would protect out-of-state youth seeking transgender treatments without parental consent. (Screenshot/Fox News)
Smith argued Maine was welcoming minors into a "fantasy world" where gender transition treatments are the only option for their gender dysphoria and leaving parents out of the equation.
"Maine has said, ‘Come to us.’ I don’t know how long that's going to last or how they go to school or anything," she said.
The Democrat-backed bill is not what Maine residents want, Smith insisted.
"I think they are overwhelmed with the thought of this. They know that this is just really making decisions for kids and pushing them to make decisions they are not ready to make," she stated.
Critics decried the Maine bill, likening it to human trafficking. (Getty images)
"I think even Democrats, maybe not the socialist ones, but other ones are thinking this is not a good idea," she continued.
"There has been a huge outcry. The committee members have heard a lot over the last week and I think they should. They are the ones who put this bill up. They are the ones bringing it to Maine when the people have not said this is what they want," Smith argued.
Minors aged 16 year or older can currently access transgender treatments without parental consent in Maine under a law passed last year. The law requires minors to first be diagnosed with gender dysphoria by a health care professional and be informed of the possible risks of receiving these treatments.
Some medical groups have argued that the United States is more lenient in providing these controversial treatments to children than many European countries are.
A committee is scheduled to vote on the transgender safe haven bill on January 25.
Kristine Parks is an associate editor for Fox News Digital. Read more.
