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Read. Follow. Verify.Arizona Legislature proposes constitutional referral requiring public entities to provide restroom accommodations and establishing private lawsuits for violations
Last action · February 9, 2026: Senate Second ReadingSponsor: John Kavanagh
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What This Bill Proposed
Arizona lawmakers propose a to refer a measure to voters requiring public entities to provide reasonable restroom accommodations upon written request and satisfactory evidence of sex, while creating a private right of action for denials or unauthorized opposite-sex restroom access.
Residents seeking alternative restroom access in public buildings would be required to submit written requests and birth certificates or medical attestations, and individuals could sue public entities for damages and attorney fees if accommodations are denied or if opposite-sex individuals are permitted in sex-designated restrooms.
- SCR 1038 is a concurrent resolution introduced in the Arizona Senate during the Fifty-seventh Legislature, Second Regular Session, requiring voter approval to take effect. context
Who It Would Have Affected
Groups the bill's text would have affected, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Public entities
Public entities must process written accommodation requests, provide single-occupancy or employee restrooms under specified conditions, and face potential civil liability and lawsuits for noncompliance.
Persons seeking restroom accommodations
Individuals may request alternative restroom accommodations in writing with evidence of sex and obtain a private right of action to sue for damages if denied.
Arizona voters
Voters will decide whether to approve or reject the proposed measure at the next general election.
Key Facts
- Public entities must provide a reasonable accommodation, such as access to a single-occupancy or employee restroom, if a person is unwilling or unable to use a multiple-occupancy restroom designated for their sex.
- Requests for accommodation must be made in writing and accompanied by satisfactory evidence of sex, defined as an original birth certificate or a modified birth certificate with a physician's written statement attesting to chromosomal count.
- A reasonable accommodation does not include access to an opposite-sex restroom while opposite-sex persons are present.
- Public entities may adopt policies accommodating persons protected under the Americans with Disabilities Act, young children, or patients needing physical assistance, as well as permitting custodial staff, emergency medical personnel, or emergency responders to enter opposite-sex restrooms.
Show all 10 facts
- Any person whose written request for accommodation is denied has a private cause of action against the public entity unless the entity demonstrates undue hardship.
- A person has a private cause of action against a public entity if they encounter someone of the opposite sex in a multiple-occupancy restroom and the public entity gave that person permission to use the restroom.
- Lawsuits must be brought in the superior court in the county where the aggrieved person resides within two years after the alleged violation occurred.
- Prevailing plaintiffs may recover monetary damages for psychological, emotional, and physical harm, along with reasonable attorney fees and costs.
- The measure defines sex as a person's immutable biological sex as determined by anatomy, physiology, genetics, and hormones existing at birth.
- The Secretary of State is required to submit the proposition to voters at the next general election.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is required to request a reasonable restroom accommodation?
What legal remedies are available if a public entity denies an accommodation?
Who must approve this measure before it becomes law?
What else do you want to know?
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Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
This bill did not become law - Died at adjournment · on the Senate floor.
Procedural history
2 actions- Feb 9, 2026SenateFloorSenate Second Reading
- Feb 5, 2026SenateIntroducedSenate First Reading
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Creation of Statutory Cause of Action for Restroom Access
The measure introduces a new legal framework allowing individuals to sue public entities directly for monetary damages and attorney fees regarding restroom accommodations and access permissions.
Connected Entities
Sources
apps.azleg.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance75How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy90Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment10Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz65Current news / social attention level
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