LANSING (WKZO) — The Michigan Secretary of State is facing a federal lawsuit over a policy to not change the gender of a transgendered person on driver’s licenses and state ID cards.
The American Civil Liberties Union filed the class action lawsuit in federal court in Detroit last week, arguing the policy is unconstitutional and is a refusal to recognize gender identity.
We asked Secretary of State Ruth Johnson about the suit. She declined comment.
According to the lawsuit, California and Washington are among the states that do not require surgery to change someone’s gender to make the license change, while Michigan does.
The ACLU also notes that requiring someone to produce an amended birth certificate is wrong because the state does not require a birth certificate to obtain a license or ID card the first time one is issued.
