Several Republican state attorneys general are contesting a federal regulation aimed at safeguarding the rights of transgender students in the nation’s schools. The regulation prohibits blanket policies that prevent transgender students from using school bathrooms that correspond with their gender identity, among other provisions.
The officials argue that these new policies could harm women and girls, infringe upon free speech rights, and impose burdens on states. Some states have recently enacted laws that conflict with these federal regulations.
“This is federal government overreach, unlike anything we’ve seen before,” said Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill during a news conference on Monday.
On the same day that the Education Department finalized regulations for enforcing Title IX, one lawsuit was filed in U.S. District Court in Monroe, Louisiana. Attorneys general from Idaho, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Montana are seeking to postpone the regulations’ August 1 implementation date.
Additionally, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina, along with four advocacy groups, filed a lawsuit in federal court in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Texas also filed a similar lawsuit in federal court in Amarillo.
Protestors gather near Kentucky house (Via Harry Anderson/Getty Images)
The attorney general’s office in Indiana announced its participation in a lawsuit to be filed in Tennessee on Tuesday. Tennessee’s attorney general’s office indicated that they are leading a multi-state lawsuit, although specifics were not confirmed.
Government officials in South Dakota expressed their state’s intent to join efforts to halt the Rule in a news release.
By filing lawsuits in multiple federal courts, the states aim to increase the likelihood of obtaining a national stay on the rule.
According to the Louisiana court filing, states argue that the Final Rule undermines Title IX’s mandate. They criticize the Department’s significant alteration of Title IX’s prohibition against sex discrimination to include discrimination based on “gender identity,” which they deem as “a highly ambiguous term.”
