Activists are rallying opposition to a half-dozen bills they say would significantly curb LGBTQ protections in Colorado — the most such proposals they’ve seen in a decade.

The bills appear to be part of a national effort, with several sharing the same language as those introduced in other state legislatures. Although Colorado’s legislation has no realistic chance of passing in a Democrat-controlled General Assembly, supporters are making their stances clear for their voters and their party. They cite religious freedoms, state rights and parental rights as their reasons for backing bills that LGBTQ advocacy group One Colorado calls “extreme and direct attacks.”

House Bill 1114 is one such piece of “model legislation” that comes to Colorado amid a debate about treatments for transgender teens across the country. It would criminalize doctors who provide transition treatments for transgender minors.

What social conservatives call “mutilation and sterilization” LGBTQ advocates and medical professionals say are professionally endorsed standards for treating transgender patients.

“These aggressive slates of anti-LGBTQ bills we’re seeing are direct attacks on the community,” said Daniel Ramos, executive director of One Colorado.

A version of Colorado House Bill 1273 has similarly been introduced in other states. The bill would prevent transgender girls from participating on any school-sponsored middle or high school sports teams for girls.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Colorado is compiling a list of similar legislation that’s circulating in statehouses throughout the country — an unsurprising development, advocates say, considering attempts to roll back protections for LGBTQ people at the federal level.

Activists say conservatives are introducing the bills to appeal to their bases, particularly during an election year.

“It’s a talking point for them to stay relevant in the upcoming election season,” said the ACLU of Colorado’s Lizzy Hinkley. Colorado is also seeing model bills seeking to curb abortion rights, which the ACLU is likewise opposing.

For Rep. Stephen Humphrey, R-Severance, the legislation is about doing what he says his district expects of him. As a Christian man, that includes preserving what he views as religious freedoms. Humphrey introduced two bills that would affect LGBTQ people: House Bill 1272, which defines marriage as between a man and a woman and only allows adoptions by heterosexual couples; and House Bill 1033, which would let businesses refuse to serve LGBTQ people based on religious beliefs.

Republican Rep. Shane Sandridge of Colorado Springs insists that his two bills — the school sports bill and the transgender medical treatment bill — are not anti-LGBTQ. He rejects the idea that the bills are an attempt at chipping away at LGBTQ rights, though he recognizes they’re politically charged. House Bill 1114 is about protecting vulnerable children, he said.

“(LGBTQ people) have specific rights like everyone else and (the right) for the government not to intrude in their business,” Sandridge said.

Both lawmakers say their bills are backed by experts, though opponents point to data that says otherwise and they call the bills grossly misinformed.

It’s not the first time some of the bills have been introduced in Colorado, but the state is seeing more anti-LGBTQ legislation than it has in the last 10 years, Ramos said.

Colorado is following a familiar cycle — elected officials implement progressive changes one year and others subsequently try to undo that work in bills the next year, ACLU official Hinkley said.

Lawmakers should use these bills as an opportunity to learn about the issues, said Rep. Brianna Titone, a Democrat from Arvada, and debunk incorrect ideas about decisions she believes should be left up to families and medical providers.

“It’s disheartening to have members of the legislature that have called me a friend try to support bills that undermine my marriage to my wife and to dehumanize me and to attack my identity,” said Titone, the state’s first openly transgender lawmaker.

This is Humphrey’s third year running House Bill 1033. The language initially came from the Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative Christian nonprofit based in Scottsdale, Ariz., that works on model legislation.

The group declined an interview request but said in a statement that it hasn’t been actively working on Colorado legislation this year. However, the organization supports the legislation related to school sports and banning surgeries or hormones for minors, according to a statement Matt Sharp, an official with Alliance Defending Freedom. Sandridge said he isn’t working directly with a national group but has used other states’ examples.

Other national groups, including Project Blitz, are often linked to model legislation, but neither Project Blitz nor the Colorado Prayer Caucus returned calls seeking comment.

The bills come at a time when LGBTQ issues are increasingly receiving bipartisan support, Ramos said. As an example, he cited Colorado’s 2019 ban on gay conversion therapy for minors, which prohibits mental health professionals from trying to change a young person’s sexual orientation or feelings toward individuals of the same sex.

Rep. Colin Larson, a Littleton Republican who voted with Democrats last year to ban conversion therapy for minors, said part of the reason could be that younger people tend to have more of a “live and let live” attitude. But he believes issues that affect transgender people are not as understood as issues that affect gay people.

Larson acknowledged that some of the bills are likely more about scoring political points but said they create opportunities to hear from the experts.

“It’s disappointing that these issues are so polarized because there needs to be an opportunity to talk,” Larson said.

He has signed onto another bill that Republicans say falls into the realm of parental rights but that LGBTQ advocates oppose: House Bill 1144, which would allow parents to see all medical records and make health care decisions for children 17 and younger. One Colorado says it would make it difficult for LGBTQ children to receive services for mental and physical health.

The final bill targeted by advocates, House Bill 1063, would protect parents’ decisions to direct the upbringing of children under their care. One Colorado says it would make it more difficult for LGBTQ children and teens to leave homes that don’t affirm their genders.

The six bills are set to be heard in the House State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee at 1:30 p.m. Thursday.