Proposed Title IX transgender rules delayed
The U.S. Department of Education will delay its proposed Title IX transgender rules until after the 2024 elections, news outlets report. The proposed regulations would prevent broad bans against transgender students participating in athletics, a practice being considered in dozens of states in recent years.
The Biden Administration earlier had separated the proposed athletics rules for transgender student participation from other proposed revisions to the Title IX regulations designed to undo some of the changes made by former President Trump and his Education Secretary Betsy DeVos. The Trump changes especially related to how schools respond to sexual assaults and harassment. Still, the new broader revisions would specify that Title IX’s prohibition of discrimination based on sex includes discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identify. A mandatory review by the Office of Management and Budget is expected to finish by April 11, paving the way for finalization of the changes.
Elsewhere
A new U.S. quarter honors prominent Title IX advocate Rep. Patsy Takemoto Mink (D-HI), the first woman of color elected to Congress. After her death in 2002, Congress renamed Title IX the Patsy T. Mink Equal Opportunity in Education Act. Personally, I send kudos to the Mint for not claiming on its page that Rep. Mink wrote Title IX, as others erroneously repeat all over the Web. I’m glad that Rep. Mink is being honored once again for her role in Title IX history. I just prefer that the praise be historically accurate.
Lastly, conflicting court rulings on whether some private schools must comply with Title IX have been settled (for now) by the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. Here’s the background: Title IX applies only to schools that receive “federal financial assistance.” If a nonprofit school takes no federal money, but its nonprofit status confers the benefit of being exempt from taxes, is that “federal financial assistance?” No, it’s not, said the Fourth Circuit, which covers the states of Maryland, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia.
