Trans students’ rights suffer another blow as appeals court refuses to lift block on new Biden protections

The Biden administration’s attempt to protect transgender students from discrimination hit another roadblock on Wednesday when a federal appeals court allowed the new rules from taking effect in August.

A three-judge panel for the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals upheld 2-1 a lower court ruling that paused President Joe Biden ’s changes to Title IX that expand the anti-discrimination law to include sexual orientation and gender identity.

The judges claimed that the Department of Education likely exceeded its authority in redefining “sex discrimination” insinuating that Congress would need to approve the change and said the rollout would be difficult to implement before school begins in the fall.

In 2021 the administration unveiled the new rules which redefined “sex discrimination” to include “sex stereotypes, sex characteristics, pregnancy or related conditions, sexual orientation, and gender identity.”

It was an extension of the landmark civil rights law which barred discrimination in schools on the basis of sex for more than 50 years.

The new rules were made final in April and intended to take effect August 1 but multiple states sought to interfere.

Wednesday’s decision means the new Title IX rules will not take effect in Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Virginia and West Virginia before the school year begins.

It is the latest blow to the Biden administration’s attempt to enact rules protecting gay or transgender students from rules that force them to use bathrooms or locker rooms, wear a uniform or play on sports teams consistent with their sex at birth.

More than 24 states, many under conservative leadership, have passed laws that prohibit students from playing on sports teams consistent with their gender identity or using pronouns consistent with their gender identity without parental consent.

“At a critical time, when trans youth are being used by politicians as a punching bag, the final rule issues an important reminder that schools cannot discriminate based on gender identity, transgender status, or sexual orientation,” Louise Melling, deputy legal director of the ACLU said at the time of the new Title IX changes.

“All students have the right to an equal opportunity to learn in school without being discriminated against on the basis of sex or sex stereotypes,” Melling added.

Other states, like Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana and Idaho, have sought to stay the new Title IX rules as well. Litigation in those cases is still pending.