Biden administration asks Supreme Court to stop states from blocking Title IX expansion

The U.S. Department of Justice on Monday asked the justices to temporarily halt two orders issued by federal courts in Louisiana and Kentucky. The orders would prohibit schools from enforcing a Title IX rule change the U.S. Department of Education introduced in April. That rule change would allow male athletes who identify as female to compete in women's sports and use female-only facilities. U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar said the district courts’ orders were too broad and should not be allowed to block the entire rule change.

What is the current state of the Title IX changes? The rule change is set to take effect on August 1, but so far at least 15 states have blocked the changes. Two federal judges in Texas last week handed down temporary injunctions against the changes, and the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill to roll back the rule change. West Virginia and Idaho earlier this month asked the Supreme Court to take up cases involving state laws that intend to protect girls and women’s sports.

Dig deeper: Read Catherine Gripp’s report in The Stew about states standing up to the Biden administration’s revision of Title IX.