A federal judge has blocked President Biden’s expansion of Title IX in four states, citing the mandatory gender identity protections as an “abuse of power.”
U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty issued a preliminary injunction on Thursday, describing the Biden administration’s unilateral changes to Title IX as a “threat to democracy.”
“This case demonstrates the abuse of power by executive federal agencies in the rulemaking process,” Doughty stated in his ruling. “The separation of powers and system of checks and balances exist in this country for a reason.”
Judge Doughty ruled that the term “gender discrimination,” as used when Title IX was established, “only included discrimination against biological males and females at the time of enactment.”
Therefore, the changes to Title IX, which expand the definition to include gender identity and sexual orientation, were deemed inadmissible.
The ruling prevents the implementation of these changes in Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, and Idaho.
Title IX is a longstanding civil rights law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in schools and other educational institutions that receive federal funding.
The Biden administration’s new rules, introduced in April, broaden the scope of sex discrimination to include discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation.
Critics argue that the update undermines protections for women and girls, allowing locker rooms and bathrooms to be based on gender identity rather than biological sex. Nearly 70 GOP lawmakers have challenged the changes, claiming they put girls at risk.
The judge’s decision highlights the ongoing debate over the balance between protecting transgender students and maintaining existing protections for biological females.
Under the new rules, LGBTQ+ students facing discrimination would be entitled to a response from their schools and could seek recourse from the federal government if their schools fail to address their concerns.
