Supreme Court keeps Biden's sex discrimination updates on hold in many states
WASHINGTON – A divided Supreme Court on Friday left in place lower court orders blocking changes to sex discrimination rules for schools in many states while new protections for transgender students under Title IX are being challenged.
The Biden administration, in an emergency request, had argued the court orders were too sweeping and some of the updates should be allowed to take effect as scheduled on Aug. 1.
But the GOP-led states and conservative groups challenging the new rules said the components can’t be easily separated.
"Schools would have to work out how the Rule functions without its key provisions, amend their policies, and train their staff accordingly—all by next week—and then do it all again after judicial review," lawyers for Alliance Defending Freedom, which represents a Louisiana school board, told the court last month.
Five of the court's conservative justices sided with the states and Justice Neil Gorsuch joined the court's three liberals in dissenting.
The majority said the administration had not shown that the provisions being challenged could be easily separated from the rest of the requirements.
Writing for the minority, Justice Sonia Sotomayor said it’s the states that failed to explain why blocking enforcement of the entire update is necessary.
The Biden administration, in April, finalized sweeping changes to the rules including stating that Title IX protects LGBTQ+ students.
The updates also include protections for pregnant students and reverses Trump-era guidelines for adjudicating sexual harassment and assault cases on campus, which had given more rights to alleged perpetrators of sexual assault and harassment.
"While we do not agree with this ruling, the Department stands by the final Title IX regulations," Education Department spokesperson Vanessa Harmoush said Friday, "and we will continue to defend those rules in the expedited litigation in the lower courts."
The rules apply to K-12 schools and colleges that receive federal funding, under the 1972 civil rights law originally passed to protect women from discrimination in education.
The changes were swiftly challenged by conservative groups and 26 states.
More: Biden’s new Title IX rules were all set to take effect. But not in these states.
Opponents argue the Biden administration is attempting to redefine “sex” in federal law to include “gender identity.”
“The rule adopts a controversial worldview about `gender identity,’ orders schools in every state to conform their policies to it, and threatens dissenters with the loss of billions in federal funding,” lawyers for Tennessee and other states challenging the rule said in a filing.
The administration had argued that the courts’ injunctions should apply only to provisions that would allow transgender students to use bathrooms that align with their gender identity and that bar harassment based on gender identity.
"Those provisions raise important issues that will be litigated on appeal and that may well require this court’s resolution in the ordinary course," Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar told the court in asking that the rest of the changes be allowed to move forward.
Organizations serving pregnant students and new parents likewise asked that protections for those students be allowed to proceed. Those include requiring schools provide lactation spaces and "reasonable modifications" such as larger desks and excused absences for prenatal care.
But courts have blocked the updates from going into effect in 26 states, as well as at hundreds of colleges and thousands of K-12 schools, as the challenges are litigated.
The legal wrangling has resulted in a patchwork of standards, with some schools still abiding by Trump-era rules, while others operate under Biden-era regulations.
For schools affected by the new regulations, the Education Department has advised schools to update their nondiscrimination policies and ensure accommodations are in place for students to use restrooms consistent with their gender identity.
"We look forward to working with school communities all across the country," department spokesperson Harmoush said in a statement, "to ensure the Title IX guarantee of nondiscrimination in school is every student’s experience."
Contributing: Zachary Schermele