Christian Smith
SALT LAKE CITY (KTVX) – In the week since Utah’s tip line to help enforce a controversial new bathroom law went live, it has been inundated with thousands of false complaints.
“As of yesterday, we have received over 10,000 false complaints through the online form,” State Auditor John Dougall told Nexstar on Thursday. “None appear to be legitimate.”
Dougall’s office posted a online complaint form according to House Bill 275, which restricts the use of state-owned restrooms and locker rooms that do not correspond to the sex assigned at birth. (The bill does not apply to private facilities.)
The form, published last Wednesday, was created to alert state authorities to possible violations of the law.
The new rule took effect when Gov. Spencer Cox signed HB 257 into law on Jan. 30, although certain provisions of the legislation were delayed until last Wednesday to allow schools and other government entities to become compliant. Under the bill, school-aged children are required to use public school bathrooms that correspond to their birth sex.
On Twitter/X, users immediately began ridiculing the new complaints hotline, with one calling it a “form of informant”. Another user posted screenshots of them filling out the form with lyrics from Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up,” an homage to the classic internet meme prank.
Most of the false complaints filed in the following days came from people concerned about bathroom legislation, Dougall told NewsNation affiliate KTVX last week, adding that it is his office’s duty to receive the complaints and possibly investigate them.
“I understand that people are concerned, but they should redirect their concern to drive political change where it is most effective and in the way that is most effective,” he said. “Because this behavior does not generate changes.”
Dougall, in a statement published Tuesday, also seemed resentful about being tasked with dealing with complaints — real or false.
“The Office created the complaint form to fulfill a legal mandate – a function that
did not request”, the long statement read, in part. “In fact, no auditor intends to become a bathroom monitor.”
The online complaint form was launched on May 1 to gather tips about potential violations at specific government entities, such as schools or agency buildings. The form is not intended for individuals who may have violated the law.
If the auditor’s office receives a legitimate complaint and investigators deem a violation has occurred, the related government entity could face fines of up to $10,000 per violation per day.
What does the bathroom bill do?
State Rep. Kera Birkeland, R-Morgan, the bill’s lead sponsor, introduced the legislation this past session as a means to protect the privacy of women and girls from those who may claim to be transgender to gain access to a private space. The full title of the bill is “Sex-Based Designations for Privacy, Anti-Bullying, and Opportunities for Women.”
Trans people in Utah have pushed back against the bill, saying it unfairly targets them.
Under the law, schools, government agencies and other state entities are required to contact authorities if they receive a complaint or allegation of a violation of the law in a state “privacy space,” such as a bathroom or locker room.
This violation of the law includes lewdness, voyeurism, and access to state-run locker rooms that do not correspond to the user’s birth sex. This last offense is marked by the new law as a criminal transgression.
However, there are exceptions for transgender adults who have legally changed their birth certificate and have undergone gender affirmation surgery. The bill also mandates that new state buildings include facilities for single occupancy.
In the case of bathrooms, the law states that adults can be charged with enhanced sentences for voyeurism, lewdness or vagrancy if the crimes are committed in facilities that do not match the sex of the offender at birth.
Equality in Utahan LGBTQ civil rights organization, highlighted that the law carries no legal consequences for transgender Utahns who use a bathroom that conforms to their identity, as long as they do not engage in inappropriate behavior.
“People should feel free to use bathrooms in Utah without fear of being reported,” the group said.
Ellie Menlove, legislative and political consul of ACLU of UtahAnother civil rights group told KTVX that the new law and related complaint form create an environment where transgender people, or those who are perceived as such, are forced to endure intimidation and harassment.
“The form released by the Utah State Auditor encourages individuals to infringe on Utahns’ right to privacy in bathrooms and other personal spaces,” Menlove said in a statement. “This is an effort to intimidate and single out gender diverse people, including trans and non-binary people – period.”
According to Dougall, state auditor, the false reports received in recent days do not take long to be resolved. Still, this is the first time his office has felt the impact of people “attacking from all over the country.”
In his statement on Tuesday, Dougall also reiterated that his office was merely required to publish the form and was not informed of the details by any of the bill’s sponsors until it “was rushed into final approval.”
“I tell people our job is to enforce the law and take complaints,” he told KTVX. “Public policy concerns should really be directed to the legislature.”
