Fred Deutsch (born March 9, 1957)Legislative Manual South Dakota 2015
p. 126 (2015) is an American politician and a Republican member of the South Dakota House of Representatives representing District 4. Deutsch lives in rural Florence, which is near Watertown, South Dakota and in Codington County in the northeast portion of the state.

Background

Deutsch previously served nine years on the Watertown Board of Education, and was first elected to the state house in 2014. He was re-elected in 2018, coming in first in a five-way race.(2 Feb 2014)
Fred Deutsch to run for District 4 House
dakotawarcollege.com(11 November 2014)
Dr. Fred Deutsch Resigns From Watertown School Board After Winning State House Seat
KXLG He first attempted to run for the District 4 seat in 2012 but lost, placing third after Democrats Kathy Tyler and Jim Peterson.(20 November 2014)
What to do when you suffer a political loss? You come back & win! 5 Questions with…. Rep-Elect Fred Deutsch
dakotawarcollege.com Deutsch is a chiropractor, as is his wife Kathleen. He practices at Deutsch Chiropractic in Watertown, SD. He graduated from Kalamazoo College in 1979 and obtained a chiropractic degree from

Northwestern Health Sciences University Northwestern Health Sciences University (NWHSU) is a private university focused on alternative health care and located in Bloomington, Minnesota. The university has educational programs in chiropractic, Traditional Chinese medicine, acupuncture, ...

in 1983.

Transgender legislation

In February 2016, Deutsch drew national attention for introducing one of the earliest bathroom bills, which aimed to make it illegal for public school students to use a bathroom, shower room or locker room for a sex other than their sex at birth.Smith, Mitch (25 February 2016)
South Dakota Bill on Transgender Students’ Bathroom Access Draws Ire
'' The New York Times''Kern, Sydney (24 January 2016)
A House Bill Dealing With Transgender Students And School Bathrooms Creates Controversy
''KDLT'' The bill was vetoed by Republican Governor Dennis Daugaard. In 2020, Deutsch introduced a bill that would make it a felony for pediatricians to provide sex change operations or opposite-sex hormones to youth ages 15 and under, punishing doctors with up to ten years in prison. The bill received strong opposition from physicians. It passed the State House of Representatives but was defeated in the State Senate. The bill was developed by Deutsch in coalition with a secretive network of anti-transgender activists involved with conservative groups such as

Alliance Defending Freedom Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF, formerly Alliance Defense Fund) is an American conservative Christian legal advocacy group that works to curtail rights for LGBTQ people; expand Christian practices within public schools and in government; and ...

, the

American College of Pediatricians The American College of Pediatricians (ACPeds) is a socially conservative advocacy group of pediatricians and other healthcare professionals in the United States. The group was founded in 2002. In 2005, it reportedly had between 150 and 200 memb ...

, Eagle Forum, Liberty Counsel, and the Christian Medical and Dental Associations. One member was Elisa Rae Shupe, who at the time had detransitioned. Shupe later retransitioned and disavowed her involvement. Though the bill failed, it was influential in the development of more successful anti-trans bills in numerous other states. An updated version of Deutsch's bill led by

Bethany Soye Bethany Soye is an American attorney and politician serving as a member of the South Dakota House of Representatives from the 9th district. Elected in November 2020, she assumed office on January 12, 2021. Early life and education Soye was b ...

was passed and signed into law in February 2023.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Deutsch, Fred 1957 births Living people Republican Party members of the South Dakota House of Representatives People from Codington County, South Dakota 21st-century American politicians People from Watertown, South Dakota Northwestern Health Sciences University alumni School board members in South Dakota American chiropractors