Only 41 States currently have laws against FGM*
States with laws against FGM are highlighted in orange
*(updated as of April 2023)
| State | Applicable law | Only applies to minors (under 18 unless otherwise specified) | Parent/ Guardian and circumciser subject to prosecution | “Vacation provision” banning travel outside the state for FGM | Cultural/ ritual reason and/or consent not a defense | Provisions for community education and outreach | Sentence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arizona | A.R.S § 12-513, 13-705, 13-1214, 13-3620 Effective 4/24/2014 | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 5.25 – 35 years and fine of not less than $25,000 | |||
| Arkansas | A.C.A. § 5-14-135, 12-18-103, 16-118-116, 17-80-121, 20-82-101, 20-82-102 Effective Mar. 26, 2019 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 3-10 years |
| California i | Cal. Pen. Code § 273a, 273.4 Passed in 1996; Effective 1/1/1997 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 1 – 6 years | ||
| Colorado ii | Col. Rev. Stat. § 18-6-401 Effective 5/24/1999 | Under 16 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment minimum 4 years | |
| Delaware | Del. Code Tit. 11, § 780 Effective 7/3/1996 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to 5 years | ||
| Florida | Fla. Stat. § 794.08 Effective 10/1/2018 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to 15 years and/or fine up to $10,000 | |
| Georgia iii | O.C.G.A. § 16-5-27 Effective 7/1/2005 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 5 – 20 years | |
| Hawaii | [PROPOSED LEGISLATION: SB 1434, HB 132] | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment for an indeterminate term | |
| Idaho | I.C. §18-1506B, I.C. §19-402, Passed March 21, 2019 Effective Jul. 1, 2019 | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to life | |||
| Illinois | 720 Ill. Comp. Stat. 5/12-34 Effective 1/1/1998, as amended 8/9/2019 | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 4 – 30 years and a fine up to $25,000 | |||
| Indiana | IC § 35-42-2, as added by P.L.51-2021 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 3-16 years and a fine up to $10,000 |
| Iowa | I.C.A. § 708.16, Passed 5/1/2019 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment for up to 5 years and fine of $750-$7,500 | |
| Kansas | K.S.A. § 21-5431 Enacted 4/10/2013 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 89-100 months | |
| Kentucky | K.R.S 508.125; 15.334 Effective 4/2/2020 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 10-20 years |
| Louisiana | La. R.S. 14:43.4 Effective 8/1/2012 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to 15 years | |
| Maryland | Md. Code Health-Gen. § 20-601, 602 Effective 4/28/1998 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to 5 years and/or fine up to $5,000 | ||
| Massachusetts | Chapter 149 of Acts of 2020 Effective 8/6/2020 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 2.5-10 years and fine up to $10,000 | |
| Michigan | MI ST 750.136; 750.136a333.9159Effective 10/9/2017 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to 15 years |
| Minnesota | PASSED: Minn. Stat. § 144.3872, 609.2245; Effective 8/1/1995[PROPOSED LEGISLATION: HF 373] | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to 5 years and/or fine up to $10,000 | |||
| Missouri | Mo. Rev. Stat. § 568.065 Passed 7/13/2000; Effective 1/1/2017 | Under 17 | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 5 – 15 years | ||
| Nevada | Nev. Rev. Stat. § 200.5083 Effective 6/26/1997 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 2 – 10 years and/or fine up to $10,000 | |
| New Hampshire | N.H. Rev. Stat. § 632-A:10-d Effective Jan. 1, 2019 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to 7 years | |
| New Jersey | N.J. Stat. § 2C:24- 10 Effective 1/17/2014 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 3 – 5 years | |
| New York | N.Y. Penal Law § 130.85 Effective 11/1/1997; N.Y. Public Health Law § 207(k) Effective 11/20/2015 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to 4 years | |
| North Carolina | NC ST § 14-28.1 Effective 10/1/2019 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonmnet up to 15.16 years | |
| North Dakota | N.D. Cent. Code § 12.1-36-01 Effective 8/1/1995, Amended 4/5/2019. | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to 5 years and /or fine up to $10,000 | ||
| Ohio | OH ST § 2903.32, 2929.14, 2929.18 Amended 4/5/2019 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 2-8 years and/or a fine up to $15,000, and an additional fine up to $25,000 | ||
| Oklahoma | 21 Okl. St. § 760 Effective 11/1/2009 | ✔ | Imprisonment 3 years to life and /or fine up to $20,000 | ||||
| Oregon | Or. Rev. Stat. § 163.207 Effective 7/15/1999431A.600 Added 2019 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to 10 years | |
| Pennsylvania | 18 Pa.C.S.A. § 3132 Passed 6/28/2019 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment for more than 10 years | |
| Rhode Island iv | R.I. Gen. Laws § 11-5-2 Effective 7/3/1996 | Imprisonment up to 20 years | |||||
| South Carolina | Code 1976 § 16-3-2210-2240, Passed May 16, 2019 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to 20 years and/or fine up to $20,000 | |
| South Dakota | S.D.C.L. §§ 22-18- 37, 22-18-38, 22- 18-39 Effective 3/10/2015 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to 10 years and fine up to $20,000 | |
| Tennessee | Tenn. Code § 39-13-110 Effective 7/1/1996, as amended, Effective 7/1/2019 | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 2 – 12 years and /or fine up to $5,000 | |||
| Texas | Tex. Health & Safety Code § 167.001 Effective 9/1/2017 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 6 months-2 years and /or fine up to $10,000 | |
| Utah | U.C.A. 1953 § 76-5-701, 76-5-702, 76-5-703, 76-5-704 Passed Mar. 22, 2019 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to 5 years and/or fine up to $5,000 |
| Vermont | 13 V.S.A § 3151 Effective Feb. 27, 2020 | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to 5 years and/or fine up to $25,000 | |||
| Virginia | Va. Code §§ 8.01- 42.5, 18.2-51.7 Effective July 1, 2018. Va. Code § 22.1-207.1:1, Passed Feb. 22, 2019 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to life and/or a fine up to $100,000 | |
| Washington | AN ACT Relating to female genital mutilation effective from April 20, 2023 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to 10 years and/or fine of $20,000 | ||
| Washington, D.C. v | [PROPOSED LEGISLATION DC B23-0339] | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment up to 10 years or a fine up to $25,000 | |
| West Virginia | W. Va. Code § 61-8D-3A Passed 2/23/1999; Effective 90 days later | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 2 – 10 years & fine $1-5,000 | ||
| Wisconsin | Wis. Stat. § 146.35 Effective 5/28/1996 | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 6 years and/or fine up to $10,000 | |||
| Wyoming | HB0127 Effective 7/1/2020 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ | Imprisonment 5-25 years |
i California: enhanced penalty for FGM under “Abandonment and Neglect of Children” (Penal Code).
ii Colorado: within child abuse law, and one of few states where doctor-patient and husband-wife privileges are inapplicable in prosecutions for FGM.
iii Georgia: One of few states where husband-wife and other statutory privileges are inapplicable in prosecutions for FGM.
iv Rhode Island: within assault statute
v Washington, D.C.: Law applies to both minors and individuals under a conservatorship or guardianship