A federal judge on Thursday reportedly blocked the new Title IX guidelines, which mandate that public schools permit transgender males to participate in sports and bathrooms for females, in four states.
This decision dealt a significant blow to the Biden administration’s efforts to implement these policies.
U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty, a Trump appointee, issued a preliminary injunction against the rules, describing them as a “threat to democracy” and a abuse of power by federal agencies.
“Title IX was written and intended to protect biological women from discrimination. Such purpose makes it difficult to sincerely argue that, at the time of enactment, ‘discrimination on the basis of sex’ included gender identity, sex stereotypes, sexual orientation, or sex characteristics. Enacting the changes in the Final Rule would subvert the original purpose of Title IX: protecting biological females from discrimination.” the judge declared in his ruling.
The regulations in Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, and Idaho are prohibited by the injunction.
Louisiana filed a lawsuit against the administration in April, and the other three states subsequently joined the case.
More than 20 states have filed litigation against the administration over its new Title IX rules since the rules were announced.
These rules appear to conflict with laws in several states that prohibit trans-identifying male students from participating in girls’ teams or using girls’ facilities.
The Education Department introduced the new Title IX regulations in April, which forbid schools from imposing blanket bans on trans-identifying males in females’ sports.
The regulations are scheduled to be implemented in August.
Title IX is a federal civil rights law that was enacted in 1972 and prohibits sex-based discrimination in institutions that receive federal funding.
The new regulations implemented by the Biden administration will be applicable to all public K-12 schools, colleges, and universities that receive federal funding, with the exception of the four states where the regulations have been obstructed.
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