DeSantis: Florida ‘will not comply’ with Biden’s new Title IX rules

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) said Thursday that his state “will not comply” with the Biden administration’s recently unveiled changes to Title IX.

“Florida rejects [President Biden’s] attempt to rewrite Title IX,” DeSantis said in a video posted on social platform X. “We will not comply and we will react.”

“We will not allow Joe Biden to try to insert men into women’s activities,” DeSantis continued. “We will not let Joe Biden undermine parental rights and we will not let Joe Biden abuse his constitutional authority to try to impose these policies on us here in Florida.”

The Biden administration on Friday unveiled a final set of changes to Title IX that add protections for transgender students to the federal civil rights law on sex-based discrimination. The changes will come into effect at the beginning of August.

“These final regulations build on the legacy of Title IX, clarifying that all students in our country can access schools that are safe, welcoming and that respect their rights,” said Education Secretary Miguel Cardona in a statement.

DeSantis has been criticized by LGBTQ advocates in the past for state laws that they say harm his community, including the so-called Don’t Say Gay law, which restricts discussion of LGBTQ topics in Florida public schools.

The Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the nation’s largest LGBTQ advocacy group, partnered with a Florida LGBTQ advocacy group last year to issue a warning against travel to Florida.

“Taken in its entirety, Florida’s list of laws and policies that target basic freedoms and rights poses a significant risk to the health and safety of many considering relocation and/or temporary travel to the state,” the travel advisory reads. from HRC and Equality Florida.

The Hill reached out to Equality Florida, the Florida Department of Education, the White House and the Department of Education.