01-14-2025
With President Biden’s term ending, his proposed Title IX rule has also likely ended. The proposed rule expanded Title IX’s definition of sex-based harassment to include sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender stereotypes. President Biden wanted to protect the rights of transgender students.
The U.S. District Court for Eastern Kentucky decided that Biden’s rule violated the First Amendment and Spending Clause of the U.S. Constitution. This court order applies nationwide. The court also said the new rule exceeded the Department of Education’s authority. Finally, the district court held that the rule was vague, overbroad, and arbitrary. Because Title IX does not address gender identity, the court refused to accept the Biden administration’s interpretation of Supreme Court precedent. The Supreme Court previously held that Title VII’s prohibition on sex-based discrimination includes workplace discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation (Bostock v. Clayton County). The Bostock ruling was limited to employment law. The Kentucky court’s majority opinion asserted that “Throwing gender identity into the mix eviscerates the statute and renders it largely meaningless.” Per the opinion, requiring teachers to use the pronouns requested by students violated their First Amendment rights.
President-elect Trump had indicated he planned to change Biden’s rule and would stop any government defense of the rule. Conservative activists cheered the court’s decision as they want to prevent transgender students from accessing bathrooms and locker rooms based on gender identity. Biden’s rules also set up a framework for how schools should handle complaints of sexual harassment and assault, including defining sexual harassment to include whether the acts were either severe or pervasive. The Kentucky court refused to uphold any portion of the regulations. Women’s groups decried the decision for failing to protect the students most vulnerable to discrimination.