Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is fighting back against the Biden administration’s new changes to Title IX.
Paxton has filed a complaint against the Department of Education’s new rules, which expand the definition of sex-based discrimination to include “gender identity.” Paxton said these new regulations undermine protections for women and is requesting a preliminary injunction to prevent the rule from taking effect while his lawsuit proceeds.
Last month, Paxton sued the Department of Education to stop the requirements. Paxton joined other state Republican leaders who disagree with the administration's update.
“Texas is asking the court to put an immediate stop to Biden’s outrageous, unlawful assault on women’s rights,” said Paxton. “Biden cannot violate the Constitution to subvert Title IX protections for women in his effort to accommodate the fringe demands of ‘transgender’ movement activists.”
The new rules, only pertaining to sexual harassment and discrimination portions of Title IX, expand protections for LGBTQ+ and pregnant students while overhauling Trump-era guidance around how schools should handle sexual assault cases.
The administration avoided the issue of whether transgender students should be able to play on school sports teams corresponding to their gender identity.
Title IX was created to protect women by prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sex in any educational program that receives federal money, including K-12 schools, colleges, and universities.
America First Legal, whose president is former Trump administration official Stephen Miller, is serving as co-counsel for the suit.