(The Center Square) – The U.S. Department of Education has released guidance to school districts around the country regarding implementing its Title IX rule changes, which are scheduled to take effect Thursday, Aug. 1.
The deadline is complicated by court orders preventing the Biden administration from pursuing the implementation of the rule in 21 states and thousands of schools and institutions of higher learning based on lawsuits filed by states, organizations and individuals opposed to the rules.
The new rules add gender identity and pregnancy protections to the law, including ensuring students have access to bathrooms and locker rooms consistent with their gender identity.
The Department of Education responded to requests for comment about its implementation of the rule by pointing to a resource email the agency’s Office of Civil Rights sent to schools last week with resources and guidance ahead of the deadline.
“In issuing these Regulations, the Department aims to fulfill Title IX’s promise that no person experiences sex discrimination in federally funded education,” the OCR’s email to schools reads. “Today’s resources bring us even closer to realizing Title IX’s nondiscrimination promise in our nation’s schools.”
The Department of Education told schools about their legal requirements under the new rules, which include selecting a Title IX coordinator and updating the school’s policies and trainings to be in line with the new rules.
The resources clearly acknowledge that as of July 19, the Biden administration is prohibited from enforcing the rule in 15 states. A federal court order added another six states to the list last week, bringing the total number to 21.
The Biden administration cannot enforce the rule in Alaska, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia, Wyoming, Arkansas, Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, North Dakota and South Dakota because of lawsuits.
The lawsuits claim the updated rule expanding the definition of the over 50-year-old federal antidiscrimination statute is unconstitutional and would violate the rights of individuals and organization members. The new rules add gender identity and pregnancy protections to the law.
The guidance says schools not affected by court orders would have to ensure their policies do not violate the updated rule.
“For example, if a school maintains sex-separate restroom facilities, it must not prevent students from accessing the restroom consistent with their gender identity because doing so causes them more than de minimis harm,” the letter to schools says.
Courts have blocked the implementation of the rule in the 21 states as well as thousands of schools where students of members of Moms for Liberty attend citing questions about the department’s ability to change the law, the violation of school employee’s First Amendment rights, and changing the clear intent of Title IX.
Some school districts, like Wake County Public School System in North Carolina, have updated their policy to reflect the changes to Title IX despite an injunction preventing the Biden administration from enforcing the rule at a middle school in the district.
During a board meeting in the last several weeks, the school’s attorney said that the district could pass a revised policy without running afoul of the court order. Others on staff at Wake County Public School System said it was doing so because of the administrative changes.
Ultimately, the Department of Education can withhold federal funding from schools that refuse to comply with the new rules where there is no court-ordered prohibition from the agency’s implementation. In Wake County, over $100 million was at stake.
This story initially published at Chalkboard News.