Texas Republicans pushed through two sweeping measures Thursday—one targeting transgender people with a “bathroom bill,” the other aimed at cutting off access to mail-order abortion pills—cementing the state’s role as a testing ground for the right’s most extreme culture-war laws.

The anti-trans measure, Senate Bill 8, forces people in government-owned buildings and public schools and universities to use facilities that match the sex on their birth certificate rather than their gender identity. It permits single-occupancy, gender-neutral bathrooms but carries stiff penalties: $5,000 fines for first offenses, up to $25,000 for repeat violations, and the threat of investigations launched by the attorney general based on citizen complaints.

State Republicans sold the bill as a way to protect “the safety and privacy of a biological female,” but LGBTQ+ groups blasted the measure for what it is: cruel and discriminatory. 

Demonstrators filled the Capitol, and Democrats fought on the floor to block it. State Rep. Jessica González of Dallas said the measure opens the door to harassment.

“We are all too familiar with attacks on trans Texans, and Senate Bill 8 on the House floor today is no exception,” she said in a statement after the body approved the measure. During debate on the measure, she accused Republicans of empowering a “vigilante potty police.”

The debate dragged on for hours, punctuated by heckling from the gallery until security cleared the chamber. Democrats attempted to counter the measure with 13 amendments, including one that would have barred restroom ID checks. But apparently, Republicans are interested in making people show ID to use a restroom—they rejected all the amendments.

The bill now heads back to the Senate, which must approve the House’s changes to the legislation, before it is sent to Gov. Greg Abbott for his signature.

Texas lawmakers have flirted with controversial bathroom bills for around a decade, but this time, Republicans found traction. According to The Texas Tribune, the Senate has advanced six versions since 2017, though the House has repeatedly stalled them. Over a dozen states have bathroom restrictions in place. If Abbott signs the bill, as he is expected to do, Texas would join them.

The House didn’t stop there. Lawmakers also approved House Bill 7, a sweeping crackdown on mail-order abortion medications. The bill, which passed in a party-line vote of 82–48, allows almost anyone to sue doctors, distributors, manufacturers—even delivery companies like FedEx or UPS—over pills sent into Texas. Each lawsuit, if successful, carries a minimum payout of $100,000. Women who take the medication are exempt, but anyone else in the supply chain is fair game, even if no abortion occurred.

Similar bills have already cleared the Texas Senate, and Abbott is expected to sign once the two chambers can agree on minor tweaks to the bill.

“This law will kill Texas women, and Republicans know it,” said state Rep. Gene Wu, the Texas House Democratic leader. “This extremist legislation puts Texas politicians in charge of women’s medicine cabinets while creating a surveillance state where your neighbors can profit from reporting your medical decisions. HB 7 turns our communities into hunting grounds for extremist vigilantes, offering $100,000 bounties to anyone willing to spy on women seeking lifesaving health care.”

Supporters said the goal is to choke off access to abortion pills nationwide, not just in Texas. By threatening manufacturers and shippers with lawsuits, anti-abortion extremists hope the drugs become harder to get even in states where abortion rights are protected. 

Together, the anti-trans and anti-abortion bills mark the latest front in a broader Republican push. Earlier this year, Abbott signed a law legally defining male and female for state purposes, echoing an executive order from President Donald Trump. This wouldn’t be the first time that the president has influenced policies in Texas, though. He’s also openly urged Texas Republicans to redraw congressional lines to lock in more GOP seats before next year’s elections.

These back-to-back bills underline where Texas Republicans are headed: not just tightening their grip on power through redistricting, but stripping away rights wherever they can. With Trump cheering them on from the sidelines, the state is once again a testing ground for the GOP’s culture-war agenda—and a preview of the cruelty they hope to take nationwide.