TITLE IX

Will our Nation's children be protected?

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

On 12/20/2024, citing mounting pressures from lawsuits and the 150,000+ public comments received for the "athletics rule," the Department of Education announced that they have officially withdrawn this rule.

On April 19, 2024, the Biden Administration lawlessly finalized changes to Title IX that redefined the definition of "on the basis of sex" discrimination to include sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex stereotyping, among other categories. Done without congressional authorization or approval, this unconstitutional revision of Title IX would apply to any K-12 and collegiate institution across the United States currently receiving federal funding.

Under the threat of losing this funding or else facing lawsuits and/or investigations by the US Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights, schools would be forced to recognize gender identity (as opposed to biological sex) as a legitimate criterion to determine which bathrooms, locker rooms, or pronouns one uses. For this reason, the Title IX changes also impact participation in athletics, with biological males given the opportunity to participate on female teams by claiming to be of the opposite sex. Besides providing an unfair advantage to males over females in sports, the new rule would also allow biological males to undress in otherwise sex-separated, intimate facilities reserved for biological females, thereby eroding student privacy. As these consequences make clear, the Title IX changes violate the original intent of Title IX, which was first passed by Congress and signed into law by President Nixon as part of the Education Amendments of 1972, to specifically protect women and girls.

Although this rule technically went into effect on August 1, 2024, 26 states have received injunctions barring the enforcement of Title IX. A complete list of these states may be viewed using the map below:

STATES with Preliminary Injunction on 2024 Title IX Ruling

As of July 31,2024

Eastern Kentucky District Court

Kentucky

Tennessee

Indiana

Ohio

Virginia

West Virginia

Eastern Missouri District Court

Arkansas

Missouri

Iowa

Nebraska

North Dakota

South Dakota

11th Circuit Court of Appeals

Alabama

Florida

Georgia

South Carolina

Western Oklahoma District Court

Oklahoma

Northern Texas District

Texas

Western Louisiana

District Court

Louisiana

Mississippi

Idaho

Montana

District Court

of Kansas

Kansas

Utah

Wyoming

Alaska

WHAT CDF IS Doing:

Since the April announcement of the rule's finalization, Citizens Defending Freedom has been actively pushing back in the following ways:

Submitting amicus briefs in support of legal challenges brought by various states against the Title IX changes
Issuing a Call-to-Action campaign asking citizens to contact their members of Congress to support a joint resolution to stop the Title IX rewrite
Sending letters encouraging school board leadership to take a stand against the new Title IX rule
Giving Title IX presentations at school board meetings using CDF's Title IX toolkit
Appearing in national media outlets educating the public about the consequences of the Title IX revisions upon schools, educators, and students alike
Tracking and providing comprehensive coverage of national and state-wide developments on Title IX

Additionally, prior to April, CDF was already involved with denouncing the Title IX changes upon the announcement by the US Department of Education to revise Title IX back in 2022. This included launching a Title IX toolkit comprised of a fact sheet, timeline, and script, participating at all levels of the federal rulemaking process (public comment, 12866 OMB meeting, etc.) and recommending citizens do the same.

DONATE NOW

CDF title ix toolkit:

SCRIPT

Empower yourself with this script, designed to address your concerns effectively as a citizen to your local school board.

TIMELINE

Explore the evolution of the Title IX rulings through a complete timeline of significant legal milestones.

FACT SHEET

Whether you are a student, educator, administrator, or advocate, this fact sheet provides valuable insights to Title IX.

CDF LEGAL ACTIVITY:

CDF Official Comment to OMB thumbnail.jpg

CDF COMMENT TO OMB

CDF's prepared memo for our March 2024 meeting with the Executive Branch's Office of Management and Budget (OMB) emphasizing checks and balances and stopping federal overreach.

EDU2023 Public Comment (Athletics Rule) thumbnail.jpg

PUBLIC COMMENT TO DEPT OF EDU

CDF’s published comments during the Spring 2023 Public Comments Period focused on honoring the original statutory intent of Title IX to protect women and girls.

LETTER TO FL GOVERNOR

CDF’s show of support for Governor DeSantis's stance against the Title IX rule changes ahead of FL AG Moody’s lawsuit filed against the U.S. Dept of Education.

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Letter to GA Governor

Letter to GA Governor re GA Dept of Edu Title IX Compliance

U.S. Department of Education Title IX Rule and Resources:

Note: Per a report in the Washington Post, one day after CDF met with the OMB in March 2024, the Biden Administration has postponed review of the transgender athletics rule until after the 2024 election. However, because the newest Title IX changes apply to any institutions receiving federal funding, athletic departments are implicated in this automatically.

For a brief recap of the 2024 Title IX changes released by the Department of Education, please see the following resources:

Overview of 2024 Title IX Changes

Full Text of 2024 Proposed Title IX Changes

2024 Unofficial Rule

DOE Title IX Press Release

Title IX Definitions, Summary, and Key Provisions

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Texas Title IX Amicus Brief

On 6/26/24, CDF filed an amicus brief in support of a preliminary injunction barring enforcement of Title IX which was successfully granted on 7/11/24).

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FL/GA/SC/AL Amicus Brief

On 7/31, following the district court's decision to uphold Biden's lawless Title IX changes, CDF submitted an amicus brief in support of an emergency injunction, which was successfully granted the same day.

DOE Discrimination Draft Policy Recommendations

For a brief recap of Title IX before the 2024 rule changes, please see the following resources:

2021 Notice of Interpretation (NOI)

Executive Order (EO) 13988

Executive Order (EO) 14021

2021 OCR Letter RE EO 14021

2021 DOJ Memo Applying Bostock to Title IX