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CIVIC HERALD
HR 3492 · 119th Congress · HouseIn committee

Protect Children’s Innocence Act

In plain language: This bill makes it a federal crime punishable by up to 10 years in prison for healthcare providers to perform gender-affirming surgeries or prescribe puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones to minors under 18. It also reinforces federal criminal bans on performing, consenting to, or transporting a minor for female genital mutilation. Minors who receive these medical procedures are explicitly shielded from arrest or prosecution. The legislation includes exceptions for treating intersex conditions, precocious puberty, prior surgical complications, or serious physical illnesses, but it excludes mental health conditions as a justification.

Provisional: our plain-language summary, pending review.

Provisionalunreviewed: impact, provisions, stakeholders, summary
People affected—The bill establishes criminal prohibitions affecting medical practitioners, minors seeking specific medical procedures or treatments, and certain facilitators, but does not provide demographic or population counts.
Fiscal magnitude—CBO cost estimate published (H.R. 3492, Protect Children’s Innocence Act, 2026-01-29); dollar figure pending review extraction — see receipt
Reach70provisional · pending reviewrigor: heuristic llm
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Issues

What this bill touches.

LGBTQ+ policy−70Sentencing & corrections−30

The sign shows the bill's direction on each issue (+ toward, − away); the number is its magnitude. Color never encodes good or bad, and never party.

Who it affects

Who it helps · who it burdens.

Who it helps

  • Minors undergoing covered surgical or chemical proceduresExplicitly protected under Section 2(a) from being arrested or prosecuted for undergoing covered surgeries, chemical castration, or female genital mutilation.provisional

Who it burdens

  • Medical practitioners and healthcare providersFaces federal criminal fines, up to 10 years in prison, or both under Section 2(a) for performing gender-transition surgeries or female genital mutilation, or for prescribing, administering, or dispensing puberty blockers and cross-sex hormones to minors for gender transition.provisional
  • Individuals facilitating or transporting minors for female genital mutilationFaces federal criminal liability under Section 2(a) punishable by fines and up to 10 years in prison for knowingly facilitating, consenting to, or transporting a minor to undergo female genital mutilation.provisional
  • Defendants in female genital mutilation prosecutionsBarred under Section 2(a) from asserting religion, custom, tradition, ritual, or standard practice as a legal defense against federal criminal charges.provisional

Dollar-level funding (FEC sector totals) is coming in a later phase.

What it does

The provisions, in plain language.

  1. Establishes a federal criminal penalty of fines, up to 10 years in prison, or both for performing or attempting to perform female genital mutilation or gender-transition surgeries on a minor.

    Sec. 2(a)provisional

  2. Establishes a federal criminal penalty of fines, up to 10 years in prison, or both for administering, prescribing, or supplying puberty blockers or cross-sex hormones to a minor for gender transition.

    Sec. 2(a)provisional

  3. Makes it a federal crime to knowingly facilitate, consent to, or transport a minor for the purpose of female genital mutilation.

    Sec. 2(a)provisional

  4. Protects minors who undergo covered surgeries, procedures, or medication regimens from being arrested or prosecuted under these provisions.

    Sec. 2(a)provisional

  5. Exempts medical procedures and medications provided to treat intersex traits, precocious puberty, physical injury, or imminent physical bodily impairment, while explicitly excluding mental or emotional distress from qualifying as a physical health exemption.

    Sec. 2(a)provisional

How your members of Congress line up

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Timeline

How it moved.

  1. Dec 18, 2025Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
  2. Dec 17, 2025Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
  3. Dec 17, 2025On passage Passed by the Yeas and Nays: 216 - 211 (Roll no. 351). (text of amendment in the nature of a substitute: CR H5992-5993)
  4. Dec 17, 2025Passed/agreed to in House: On passage Passed by the Yeas and Nays: 216 - 211 (Roll no. 351).
  5. Dec 17, 2025On motion to recommit Failed by the Yeas and Nays: 210 - 218 (Roll no. 350).
  6. Dec 17, 2025Rule H. Res. 953 passed House.
  7. Dec 17, 2025Rules Committee Resolution H. Res. 953 Reported to House. Rule provides for consideration of H.R. 6703, H.R. 498 and H.R. 3492. The resolution provides for consideration of H.R. 6703 and H.R. 498 under a closed rule and H.R. 3492 under a structured rule with one hour of general debate and one motion to recommit on each bill.
  8. Sep 26, 2025Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Judiciary. H. Rept. 119-311.
  9. Sep 26, 2025Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Judiciary. H. Rept. 119-311.
  10. Jun 10, 2025Ordered to be Reported in the Nature of a Substitute (Amended) by the Yeas and Nays: 17 - 10.
  11. May 19, 2025Introduced in House
  12. May 19, 2025Introduced in House

The original text

Read it for yourself.

Read the original text →

Sources & provenance

Congress.govrefreshed 9 days ago

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