New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio (D) on Tuesday signed a bill that allows for a third gender category to be added to city-issued birth certificates.
The nonbinary category, known as “X”, can be added for those who do not identify as either male or female, CBS New York reported.
New Yorkers are no longer required to provide either a doctor’s letter or affidavit from a licensed health care facility to change their own gender marker.
The change allows people to submit their own affidavit affirming their gender identity.
Residents previously had to undergo gender confirmation prior to 2014 if they were seeking to change their gender on a birth certificate, the outlet noted.
De Blasio said that residents should make the identity for themselves, not have their government do it for them.
“This new legislation will empower all New Yorkers, especially our transgender and gender nonbinary residents, to have birth certificates that better reflect their identity, and it furthers the City’s commitment to defending the rights of our LGBTQ community,” de Blasio said.
New York City joins the states of California, Washington, and Oregon in having legislation that provides the “X” category on birth certificates. Washington, D.C. allows for the designation on driver’s licenses.