Texas , although the state legislature has not repealed its sodomy laws that only apply to same-sex sexual acts. The state has prohibited discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in employment, housing and public accommodations since Proposed bills restricting preferred gender identity on legal documents, bans on transgender people in women's sports, bathroom use restrictions, among other bills were vetoed numerous times by Democratic Governor Laura Kelly since However, many of Kelly's vetoes were overridden by the Republican supermajority in the Kansas legislature and became law.
Two lawsuits, one in state court and the other in federal court, challenged the constitutionality of the state's ban on same-sex marriage , and on November 4, , a U. District Court judge ruled Kansas' ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional. His ruling was stayed as the state sought a stay pending appeal without success, and it took effect on November 12, From November 12, to the Supreme Court's ruling in Obergefell v.
Hodges on June 26, , marriage licenses were generally available to same-sex couples, but the state government continued to deny recognition to same-sex marriages in all other respects. Prior to European settlement of Kansas, there were no known social or legal punishments for engaging in homosexual activity. Among several Native American tribes, customs of " two-spirit " individuals existed: people who would dress, act and live as the opposite gender, as well as perform tasks associated with the opposite gender.
The Native Americans did not share the typical Western views of gender and sexuality. In , sodomy "crime against nature" was made a felony with a penalty of "not less than ten years". In , this was changed to "not more than 10 years". In the case of State v. Hulbert , the Kansas Supreme Court held that fellatio , whether heterosexual or homosexual, violated the state's sodomy statute.
The revision also legalized heterosexual sodomy; Kansas was one of the first U. In , a proposed bill to repeal the now-only homosexual sodomy law was approved by the Kansas House of Representatives by a vote of 21 to However, it failed to be considered in the Senate.
