The Biden administration’s new Title IX rule expanding protections for LGBTQ+ students has been temporarily blocked in four states by a federal judge in Louisiana who found that it overstepped the Education Department’s authority. U.S. District Judge Terry A. Doughty granted a preliminary injunction, calling the new rule an “abuse of power” and a “threat to democracy.” The order blocks the rule in Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, and Idaho, which filed a challenge to the rule in April. The Education Department did not immediately respond to the order. This decision is part of at least seven cases backed by more than 20 Republican-led states fighting against Biden’s rule.
The new rule, set to take hold in August, expands Title IX civil rights protections to LGBTQ+ students, expands the definition of sexual harassment at schools and colleges, and adds safeguards for victims. Doughty, who was appointed by former President Donald Trump, is the first judge to block the rule. It was praised by civil rights advocates but drew backlash from opponents who say it undermines the spirit of Title IX. These opponents argue that the new rule would force schools across the four states to pay millions of dollars to update their facilities, violating state sovereignty and free speech laws according to the judge’s order.
Louisiana is among several Republican states with laws requiring people to use bathrooms and locker rooms based on their sex assigned at birth, which restricts transgender students from using facilities that align with their gender identity. President Biden’s rule clashes with these laws and claimed to supersede them. The judge expressed concern that the rule could require schools to allow transgender women and girls to compete on female sports teams. Several Republican states have laws forbidding transgender girls from competing on girls teams. Biden’s administration has proposed a separate rule that would forbid such bans, but the judge still questions if the new rule could be interpreted to apply to sports teams.
The Defense of Freedom Institute, a right-leaning nonprofit that backed the Louisiana lawsuit, applauded Doughty’s order, expressing confidence that other courts and states will soon follow. Biden issued the new rule after dismantling a rule created by Trump’s education secretary, Betsy DeVos, which narrowed the definition of sexual harassment and added protections for students accused of sexual misconduct. DeVos called the Louisiana decision a victory on social media, criticizing Biden’s “anti-woman radical rewrite of Title IX” as illegal and radical. Overall, the decision to block Biden’s Title IX rule in four states has sparked a legal battle between civil rights advocates and opponents who believe the rule goes too far in expanding protections for LGBTQ+ students.
