Hurst put forward a bill that, if approved, would require sex offenders who are 21 years of age or older, and committed a sexual offense against a child 12 years of age or younger, to undergo permanent surgical castration before being released from custody. According to Sputnik, "only 7 states allow voluntary chemical castration as a replacement to imprisonment of those convicted of sexual offenses, and Texas is the only state that currently allows certain repeat offenders to elect surgical castration."[citation needed]
