The Coast Guard remains committed to allowing transgender members to continue to serve until there is an explicit policy barring them, Commandant Adm. Paul Zukunft told lawmakers today.
Zukunft said during a House Appropriations Homeland Security Subcommittee hearing today that senior officials from all five of the armed services continue to discuss how to move forward given President Donald Trump’s efforts to implement a ban on transgender people serving in the military. But that the issue has not yet been “reconciled” among all branches, he said.
At least 17 of the 40,000 active-duty Coast Guard members would be considered transgender or to have “transitioned,” per Zukunft, who said he counted one transgender person among his personal staff.