Federal judge blocks Biden’s Title IX transgender protections

A federal judge in Texas on Tuesday suspended President Biden’s proposed changes to the interpretation of Title IX that added protections for transgender students. The changes are the subject of several lawsuits filed by GOP attorneys general across the country.

The Education Department in April unveiled a final set of sweeping changes to Title IX, the civil rights law that prevents sex discrimination in schools and education programs that receive government funding. The new rule, which was due to take effect on August 1, covers discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity for the first time.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) sued the federal government after the guidance was first proposed a year ago.

District Judge Reed O’Connor ruled with Paxtonexplaining that the federal government “engaged in unlawful agency actions taken beyond its authority while failing to comply with appropriate notice and comment requirements in doing so.”

The administration’s Title IX overhaul would also strengthen anti-discrimination protections for pregnant students and change how schools handle complaints of sexual harassment and assault.

Paxton and conservative groups often file cases in the Northern District of Texas in hopes of welcoming O’Connor, a nominee of former President George W. Bush. He was the judge who ruled in 2018 that the Affordable Care Act was unconstitutional and ruled in several cases that later became landmark Supreme Court decisions, including the Obergefell v. Board of Education decision. Hodges in 2015, which enshrined the right to gay marriage.

O’Connor has previously spoken out against attempts by Democratic presidents to expand Title IX. In 2016, he went against the Obama administration when it gave guidance that colleges and universities could not discriminate on the basis of sex, in a similar attempt to expand protections to transgender students. An appeal of his decision was rescinded when former President Trump took office.

The judge’s reasoning in Tuesday’s ruling, that the Biden administration went beyond its authority and did not allow adequate time for comment, is the same as his explanation for the Obama administration’s decision.

O’Connor criticized the Biden administration, saying its guidance would “functionally rewrite” Title IX and “shockingly transform American education and usurp an important congressional issue.”

“This is not how our democratic system works,” the judge wrote.

Paxton hailed the decision as a victory against government excesses.

“Joe Biden’s illegal effort to weaponize Title IX for his extremist agenda has been stopped,” he said in a statement. declaration. “Threatening to withhold education funding by forcing states to accept ‘transgender’ policies that put women in danger was clearly illegal. Texas prevailed on behalf of the entire nation.”

The Biden administration has not yet finalized a separate rule governing athletics eligibility. The proposal put forward by the Department of Education last year would prohibit schools from enacting policies that categorically ban transgender student-athletes from sports teams that match their gender identity, with some exceptions.

The Hill has reached out to the Department of Education for comment.

This story originally appeared on thehill.com read the full story