California is considering new rules to allow transgender athletes to compete in boxing, kickboxing and mixed martial arts.

Under the proposed rules put forward by the California Athletic Commission, transgender athletes would be required to have undergone hormone therapy for at least two years before competing. A testing procedure for transgender athletes would be established.

Commissioner Christopher Giza says the rules attempt to strike a balance.

"Everybody has a right to participate in sports, but we need to find a way to allow them to participate safely, for both contestants, for both the transgender athlete as well as the non-transgender," Giza said.

Giza says the regulations would bring the Commission in line with other sports organizations, like the Olympics and NCAA, which already have transgender polices on their books.

Public testimony will be heard in the next few months. The rules could take up to a year to go into effect.