Another federal judge has blocked the Biden administration’s final rule adding “gender identity” to Title IX, extending the moratorium on the federal rewrite to another six states.
U.S. District Judge Rodney Sippel granted a preliminary injunction Wednesday preventing the revised Title IX rule from taking effect in Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota, pending the outcome of the lawsuit. The order brings the number of states putting on legal hold the regulations set to take effect Aug. 1 across the rest of the nation to 21.
The federal Department of Education rule unveiled in April requires education programs that receive federal money, including K-12 schools, colleges and universities, to include males who identify as female under Title IX, the 1972 civil rights law that bans sex discrimination in education.
The department has defended the update, saying it would “promote educational equity and opportunity for students across the country as well as accountability and fairness, while empowering and supporting students and families.”
“This is a huge win for women and girls across the country,” said Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, who led the latest lawsuit against the change. “The court recognized that Joe Biden’s plan to allow biological males into female spaces was not only blatantly illegal, but also a slap in the face to every woman in America.”
Judge Sippel, a Clinton appointee, said the states have “a fair chance of prevailing on their argument that the unambiguous plain language of Title IX and the legislative history support their position that the term ‘sex’ means biological sex,” as opposed to gender identity.
The ruling means that the Biden administration is now 0-for-4 in defending its Title IX update against lawsuits filed in federal district courts by coalitions of Republican-led states.
In addition, two federal appeals courts — the 5th and 6th U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals — have denied the Biden administration’s motions to set aside the lower-court injunctions in the last week.
BREAKING:https://t.co/UFIFU7quJ4 pic.twitter.com/7PJQCFa0Jg
— Attorney General Andrew Bailey (@AGAndrewBailey) July 24, 2024
“As the father of a young daughter, I take this fight personally,” Mr. Bailey said. “My office will continue to fight for the preservation of women and girls, who have a right to thrive without fear of being erased by a radical transgender ideology.”
In defending its rewrite, the Education Department leaned heavily on the Supreme Court’s 2020 decision in Bostock v. Clayton County, which ruled that Title VII, another provision of the civil rights law, prohibits discrimination based on gender identity in the workplace. So far, however, that argument has fallen flat with the courts.
“Although Title IX also prohibits sex discrimination, the Supreme Court has said that ‘Title VII is a vastly different statute from Title IX,’” said Judge Sippel in the 56-page ruling.
The other states covered by temporary injunctions are Kansas, Alaska, Utah and Wyoming, which sued in federal court in Kansas; Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana and Idaho, which sued in federal court in Louisiana, and Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia, which sued in federal court in Kentucky.
The federal judge in Kansas also blocked the Title IX rule from being enforced by schools attended by children whose parents belong to Moms for Liberty, or students who are members of Young America’s Foundation or Female Athletes United. Those groups were also plaintiffs in the Kansas case.
In addition, a federal judge blocked temporarily the Title IX rule from being enforced in the Carroll Independent School District in Southlake, Texas.
The department has introduced a separate rulemaking on transgender eligibility in girls’ and women’s sports, which is expected to be finalized after the November election.
A DOE spokesperson told The Washington Times that the department is “reviewing the ruling.”
“Title IX guarantees that no person experience sex discrimination in a federally-funded educational environment,” said the spokesperson. “The Department crafted the final Title IX regulations following a rigorous process to realize the Title IX statutory guarantee. The Department stands by the final Title IX regulations released in April 2024, and we will continue to fight for every student.”
Correction: This article has been updated to reflect the federal judge’s order pausing the Title IX final rule in Texas.
• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.
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