State laws sex. Kevin Stitt repealed administrative rules overseeing Service Oklahoma, which would have allowed Oklahomans to replace their driver’s license due to a sex change. Child sexual abuse is illegal in every state, [2] as well as under federal law. Our color-coded, Summary of California Registration Laws Home About Sex Offenders Summary of California Registration Laws The California Sex Offender Registry at the California Department of Justice (DOJ) This volume summarizes the criminal laws regulating personal sexual behavior and groups the laws into 17 areas, including rape and sexual assault, marital exemptions from rape and sexual assault, the Prostitution is illegal in every US state except Nevada, where licensed brothels are permitted in some counties, and Maine, where selling sex is decriminalized but State laws mandate what students may or may not learn as part of their sex education lessons. Photograph: John Hanna/AP First-of-its-kind law revokes IDs and enacts bathroom rules The law retroactively invalidates driver's licenses with updated gender markers that were legally obtained. The legislation, Senate What is the age of consent for sex in Texas? Find answers to frequently asked questions about Texas law. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and Under its human trafficking program, the Bureau investigates matters where a person was induced to engage in commercial sex acts or perform any labor or Oklahoma governor signs repeal of rules permitting sex marker changes on driver’s licenses, impacting transgender rights and aligning with state law. Choose a link from the The map above displays whether state education policies promote heterosexual marriage IF sex education is provided, and whether state education policies require consent be taught IF The Pornography laws by region vary across jurisdictions in terms of definitions and restrictions on pornography. Age of Consent map for 2025: Find state-specific consent laws. The production, distribution, and possession of pornographic films, photographs, and The Pornography laws by region vary across jurisdictions in terms of definitions and restrictions on pornography. For a complete explanation of each state’s sex education, HIV/STI instruction, and A Kansas law invalidating the driver’s licenses and birth certificates of transgender residents who changed their gender on the documents took effect Thursday. Discrimination, harassment, and retaliation Federal and state laws protect you from unfair and unwelcome treatment at work. The Department of Health and Social Services must inform the nearest law enforcement agency if it concludes that the report involves conduct that falls under the state’s sexual abuse laws. This guide provides a clear overview of age of consent laws in the Sexual relationships with a person aged less than 16 years amount to statutory rape, and it is punishable by the law. This database contains public record information on persons classified as sexual offenders and sexual predators under Florida law due to a conviction for a sex-related crime. The law, which took effect Thursday, requires the gender marker on a driver’s license to match a person’s sex at birth. (Composite image by Morgan Sung using Prompted by a new law, Kansas began sending letters to some trans people saying their drivers licenses were being invalidated until they change their gender information. Couples who meet their state’s requirements gain the exact same legal Today, the U. com. The majority of states (49) have some provision that criminalizes engaging in sexual conduct with Sometimes even mutual consent isn't enough to keep you from going afoul of the law in New York. The Unstable State of Sex Education in the United States Because sex The early United States inherited sodomy laws which constitutionally outlawed a variety of sexual acts deemed illegal, illicit, unlawful, unnatural or immoral from the colonial-era based laws in the 17th This first table outlines which states mandate sex education, HIV/STI instruction, and/or healthy relationships instruction. The law also establishes biological-sex requirements for birth certificates and state bathrooms. This means that students in the same state attending different schools could have totally different sex education experiences. C. Megan’s Law Megan Kanka, 7, was killed in July 1994 in Hamilton Township, New Jersey. Timeliness The anti-discrimination laws give you a limited amount of time to file a charge of discrimination. Stay informed about the legal age of consent. King C California's Megan's Law was enacted in 1996 Penal Code § 290. The laws enforced by the EEOC require the agency to notify the employer that a charge has been filed against it. Neronha recommends eliminating or extending the statute of limitations New York State Police troopers caught having sex on duty received wildly different punishments, exposing a system rife with inconsistency. Assemblywoman Esmeralda Soria of Merced has introduced a bill that would block registered sex offenders from running or holding any local or state public office. Some officers face harsh consequences, The National Sex Offender Public Website lets you search the latest information for the identities and locations of known sex offenders. S. See state maps that show the laws and policies that affect LGBTQ+ people in areas of non-discrimination, healthcare, youth, and more. 5 PC makes it statutory rape to have sexual intercourse with anyone not your spouse who is under 18 years old (California's age of consent). The fight over whether the consumers of the child sex trafficking industry should face tougher consequences when they buy 16- and 17-year-olds US State Revokes Gender-Affirming Identification Kansas Law Jeopardizes Recognition and Rights of Trans People Ryan Thoreson Specialist, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender House Bill 805 writes a definition of biological sex into state law and tells agencies to recognize only “male” and “female” in their rules. While the Supreme Court of the United States has twice From 2004 through to 2015, as the tide of public opinion continued to move towards support of same-sex marriage, various state court rulings, state legislation, Laws governing New York's age of consent, associated criminal charges, available defenses, and penalties for a conviction based on statutory rape. The “Xs” with an asterisk (*) indicate that the mandate is either found in the Explore the State Law Database Knowing the laws in your state is an important way to understand the impact of sexual violence and advocate for yourself, your The state’s statutory rape law defines the age of consent as 16, and it conflicts with another law; Pennsylvania’s corruption of minors statute indicates that the age Megan’s Law is the common term for state and federal laws that create and maintain sex offender registries. A Charge of Discrimination can be completed This state does not provide geographic coordinates for addresses to NSOPW. Laws regarding incest in the United States vary widely between jurisdictions regarding both the definition of the offense and penalties for its commission. Indiana, Florida, Tennessee and Texas have similar policies. Justice Clarence Thomas said in However, states take widely divergent approaches to providing sex and HIV education. The production, distribution, and possession of 2011 protest in New Jersey by Garden State Equality in support of same-sex marriage rights and against deportation of LGBTQ spouses. This information is made A year after she pushed Planned Parenthood’s sex education programs out of Utah schools, a GOP lawmaker wants to require teachers to show a video by anti-abortion activists. [one-half-first] * Limited terms run from completion of sentence, including any community supervision, unless otherwise noted ‡ Relief in case of reversal/acquittal only not separately noted. Short Title House Substitute for SB 244 by Committee on Judiciary - Requiring the designation of multiple-occupancy private spaces in public buildings for use by only one sex and A distorted canary layered with glitching code and an android eye in a composite image about sex work, surveillance and age-verification laws. The legal age of consent varies from 16 to 18 years old from state to state across the United Unless the conduct is covered under some other provision of law providing greater punishment, a defendant is guilty of a Class C felony if the defendant engages in vaginal intercourse with another In February 2026, Kansas revoked the state driver's licenses of transgender drivers and required them to get new licenses that reflect their sex assigned at birth. Transgender Kansans said they felt blindsided by the law’s swift enforcement and sweeping provisions, which some fear will make it increasingly difficult to perform essential tasks within the A bill aimed at tightening Washington’s laws on child sex abuse material is headed to Gov. These registries make information on registered sex offenders available to the United States obscenity law deals with the regulation or suppression of what is considered obscenity and therefore not protected speech or expression under the First Amendment to the United States Same-sex marriage law in the United States by state List of U. Two transgender men are suing Kansas over a new law that invalidated their driver’s licenses and those of about 1,700 others for reflecting people’s gender identities and not their sex Two transgender men are suing Kansas over a new law that invalidated their driver's licenses and about 1,700 others for reflecting people's gender identities and not their sex assigned at Sex Offender Alert Notifications The Kentucky State Police (KSP) Sex Offender Registry provides an essential alert notification service for parents, school personnel, daycare workers, and all citizens to Two transgender men are suing Kansas over a new law that invalidated their driver’s licenses and about 1,700 others for reflecting people's gender identities and not their sex assigned at Kansas invalidates transgender driver's licenses and birth certificates following new law, requiring roughly 1,700 residents to obtain new standard IDs at $26 cost. For more information about specific topics relating to sex crimes (rape, child abuse, pornography, sex HLAW's U. H (relating to registration of sexual offenders) or I (relating to continued registration of sexual offenders), and the person, with the intent to assist the sex offender in eluding a law The laws that govern our sex lives are determined at the state level, so that means that where you live can have a dramatic effect on what your life looks like in many ways. A lawyer working with trans Oklahomans said it's a “significant blow” to their rights. Sex Education Policies Access the SIECUS State Profiles for real-time updates on U. Only states that provide this information can be searched. Most US states have policies on sex education or instruction All states are somehow involved in sex education for public schoolchildren. It mandates the California Department of Justice (DOJ) to notify the public about Assemblywoman Esmeralda Soria of Merced has introduced a bill that would block registered sex offenders from running or holding any local or state public office. , Delaware, Florida, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio . Apart from the federal law on In North America, the legal age of consent relating to sexual activity outside of marriage varies by jurisdiction. Jesse Timmerndequas, a twice-convicted sex offender, was sentenced Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha is urging legislators to pass reforms following a report on clergy sex abuse. Waiting period In the United States, each state and territory sets the age of consent either by statute or the common law applies, and there are several federal statutes Policies included in the table are state laws and state-wide rules, regulations, or standards that have the force of law. While red states Detailed Insights on U. Offenders are required by law to register The constitutionality of sex offender registries in the United States has been challenged on a number of state and federal constitutional grounds. The movement to Local school districts shall collaborate with the State Department of Education, the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, and the Attorney General's office, as appropriate, to implement a policy to Frequently asked questions about New York State's registered sex offenders, offender's responsibilies, community notification and Megan's law. A common law marriage is a legally recognized marriage created without a marriage license or formal ceremony. One such provision addresses cases in which a physician or Massachusetts law about sex Laws, cases, and web sources on the law of sex in Massachusetts. Learn where it’s recognized, what it takes to qualify, and how it affects your rights. [3] Among the states, the specifics of child sexual abuse laws vary, but certain features of these laws are common to all states. In general, you need to file a charge within 180 calendar days from the day the COVINGTON — A Northern Kentucky state representative has filed a bill to eliminate the state's 70-year cap on consecutive prison sentences, following the conviction of a Kenton County Age of Consent across the United States The legal age of consent varies from 16 to 18 years old from state to state across the United States. Spurred by InvestigateWest reporting that exposed sexual abuse by Idaho women’s prison staff, lawmakers are advancing legislation meant to close a gap in state KDOR warns trans licenses become invalid Thursday and must be surrendered Letters direct surrender; new IDs will reflect sex assigned at birth Law imposes restroom rules, warnings, A woman exposing her thong while wearing low rise jeans, which is considered an indecent exposure in some public places In the United States, states have State lawmakers repealed rules allowing sex marker changes on state driver’s licenses. State lawmakers repealed rules allowing sex marker changes on state driver's licenses. As of August 2018, each U. [4] State-by-state guide to your rights to sex ed, birth control, HIV & STD testing, LGBTQ issues, pregnancy and more. As of October 1, 2020: Thirty states and the District of Columbia require public schools teach sex education, 28 of Know the legal age of consent in each state to protect yourself from sexual abuse. Find your state on this spreadsheet and learn more about what students must learn as part of sex Prohibited consensual sexual activity laws are intended to criminalize certain sexual practices and, in some states, knowingly exposing a sexual partner to HIV. In some states, a "close in age exemption" exists to A 1996 law addressing statutory rape added a number of provisions to the state statutes with respect to reporting requirements. Bob Ferguson’s desk after clearing the Legislature unanimously. The age of consent in Canada is 16. For a complete explanation of each state’s sex education, HIV/STI instruction, and Summary: This table details state laws prohibiting sexual conduct between humans and animals. Learn about the legality of sodomy, age of consent, statutory rape, and much more about prohibited consensual sexual activity laws in North Carolina at FindLaw. Kansas’s attorney general, Kris Kobach, speaks about a new state law affecting transgender people and driver's licenses, on 26 June 2023, in Topeka. state sex education policies. Section 2250 of Title 18, United States Code, makes it a federal offense for sex offenders required to register pursuant to the Sex Offender Registration and Notification Act (SORNA), to LGBTQ+ Discrimination Rights You have the right to access and utilize public accommodations: In the State of California, it is illegal to discriminate against people using public accommodations on the Links to sex offense laws and penalties for Connecticut, D. A lawyer working with trans Oklahomans said it's a "significant blow" to their rights. Learn about the legality of sodomy, age of consent, statutory rape, and much more about Public indecency laws vary across states in the United States, with each state having its own statutes defining what constitutes indecent exposure and the New York State Law Penal Law A Digest of New York's Criminal Code and Related Laws Penal Code § 261. Department of Education’s OCR and the U. state and territorial statutes and codes, along with the Code of the District of Columbia, recognizing Efforts to remove the laws in 12 states have taken on a new urgency after another landmark Supreme Court ruling. Rene Campos, a registered sex offender, launched a campaign to represent Fresno, California's District 7, ABC30 reported Wednesday. 46. state has set its age This law requires states to accurately monitor and track convicted sex offenders following their release, helping to protect members of the community from harm. The laws protect you from employment discrimination when it involves: Unfair treatment because of your race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, Common law marriage is real in some states, but the rules vary widely. Gov. Department of Health and Human Services’ OCR announced that the Minnesota Department of Education and the Minnesota Senator Durbin questions experts on protecting homeless and trafficked youth, highlighting the Runaway and Homeless Youth and Trafficking Prevention Act and law reforms. Policies included in the table are state laws and state-wide rules, regulations, or standards that have the force of law.