Lawrence transgender woman sues Kansas over invalidated female license

A Lawrence transgender woman says Kansas invalidated her female driver’s license after 13 years of living with documents that matched her identity, turning one state letter into a barrier to travel, banking, employment paperwork, traffic stops and even care for her disabled daughter.

The woman, who was born in 1971, underwent irreversible genital reassignment surgery 13 years ago and has Douglas County court orders recognizing her as female. She has held a Kansas driver’s license listing her as female since 2014, and renewed it again in 2017 and 2023, including to obtain a Real ID star. Her lawsuit says the state’s action under SB 244 now leaves her unable to truthfully sign documents calling herself male without risking fraud.

According to the complaint filed by Lawrence attorney David Brown, the Kansas Department of Revenue sent her a letter on April 10 saying her license had been invalidated under the new law. The suit says she tried to appeal, but the department did not respond and did not clearly explain any appeal rights in its letter. It asks a Douglas County judge to void SB 244 and block enforcement.

SB 244, or House Substitute for Senate Bill 244, directs the Division of Vehicles to invalidate and reissue driver’s licenses when needed to correct the gender identification on those licenses, and directs vital records officials to do the same for birth certificates. Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed the measure on February 13, 2026, saying it was “poorly drafted” and would have “significant, far-reaching consequences.” The Kansas Legislature overrode that veto on February 18, and the Kansas Register published the enrolled bill on February 26.

Kansas Department of Revenue guidance says people whose current credential does not match their sex assigned at birth must surrender the credential and receive a new one. The agency says no additional documentation is required, affected people were or will be sent letters, and no further grace periods are expected. It also says the license-status database is updated in real time and is what law enforcement sees during a traffic stop.

The lawsuit lands in the middle of a broader Douglas County fight over transgender identity documents. The ACLU of Kansas says two transgender men, Daniel Doe and Matthew Moe, filed a separate challenge to SB 244 on March 2, 2026, and the Douglas County district court denied a temporary restraining order on March 10. An evidentiary hearing on a temporary injunction is scheduled to begin September 29, 2026.

Advocates say the stakes extend well beyond one license. The Conversation has described Kansas as the first state to invalidate state-issued identification documents that were legally obtained because the marker did not match sex assigned at birth. With SB 244 now on the books and under challenge in Douglas County, the dispute is testing how far the state can go in forcing identity papers back to birth records, and who pays the price when those papers no longer match a resident’s life.