Pennsylvania to Allow Gender Option ‘X’ on Driver’s Licenses

Pennsylvania will soon allow residents who wish not to be identified as male or female to select gender option “X” on their driver’s licenses.

The Daily Item reported that the state’s department of transportation expects to have these “gender-neutral” driver’s licenses ready by the end of next year.

A spokeswoman for PennDOT, the state’s transportation agency, said the agency does not need approval from the Pennsylvania legislature to make this change.

Department spokeswoman Erin Waters-Trasatt told Item that the agency plans to add the “X” option through “a systematic process.”

She added that under the state’s vehicle code, the agency is allowed to make the change without approval from a legislative body and officials say the licenses will comply with federal REAL ID regulations.

Thirteen other states— including Maryland, New Hampshire, Colorado,  Oregon, California, Maine, and Minnesota— have rolled out similar proposals to give their residents a gender-neutral option on their driver’s licenses.

Some municipalities have gone as far as including proposals that would allow gender-neutral birth certificates. In January, a New York City law went into effect that allowed parents to obtain birth certificates for their children without listing a specified gender.