In August, a coalition including a staff sergeant at Joint Base Lewis-McCord and local nonprofit Gender Justice League sued the Trump administration over its proposal to ban transgender soldiers from serving in the military. As of Tuesday, a judge ruled that the state of Washington can formally join their cause as a plaintiff.

According to Lambda Legal, one of the organizations representing the plaintiffs, Washington is now the first state to intervene in a lawsuit challenging the transgender military ban.

The state of Washington filed a motion to intervene back in September, arguing that President Trump had adopted a discriminatory policy targeting transgender soldiers that would have "significant, damaging impacts on the State of Washington and its residents." The motion noted that 60,000 military members serve in Washington State, and that the military is the state's second largest employer. Not only does the ban have economic impacts, the state's motion argued, but the state also has a responsibility to protect the health and well-being of its residents from discrimination.

"We are grateful to Governor Jay Inslee and Attorney General Bob Ferguson for joining us in this fight, as they have joined other fights against the Trump Administration’s efforts to roll back civil rights across the country," Lambda Legal senior attorney Peter Renn said in a statement about the judge's decision.

Legal efforts to reverse the ban are underway in several other states. In October, a federal judge blocked key aspects of the ban while legal pushback is pending. In Washington, separate oral arguments for a preliminary injunction on the ban are scheduled for next Tuesday.