Arkansas Reverses Gender-Neutral ID Policy

Arkansas will no longer allow residents to use "X" instead of male or female on state-issued driver's licenses or identification cards, with Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders defending the move as "common sense." The rule change, which must be approved by a legislative committee, aims to legally define sex as binary, but has faced criticism for being discriminatory towards transgender and nonbinary people, as well as creating uncertainty for intersex individuals. The discontinued policy allowed for the "X" designation without verifiable information, and the state has about 342 driver's licenses and 174 IDs with the "X" designation.