The military offers to transfer troops affected by anti-LGBTQ laws, but the process isn't easy

In Texas, Governor Greg Abbott calls it "child abuse" for parents to provide transgender children with medical care that supports their gender identity. In February, he told state officials to investigate them and called on the public to report instances of minors getting such care.

It brought panic to one Air Force family living in San Antonio.

“We didn't know whether it was just going to be a witch hunt immediately, or if they really had any legal standing,” said B, a military spouse who asked to go by her first initial for fear of retaliation. “Did that mean they could come to our door and take our child away from us? We just didn’t know.”

B and her husband have a teenage daughter who came out as trans a few years ago. Their daughter goes to a private doctor off-base, where she’s received puberty blockers, mental health counseling, and hormone replacement therapy.

“My initial reaction was we need to pack up and get out of here,” B explained.

Although B’s initial instinct was to leave the state, moving isn’t easy for service members, who usually have little choice about where they're stationed.