Now that the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against the Biden administration, blocking new Title IX rules which would enhance LGBTQ+ protections in at least 26 states, schools across the country are facing a patchwork of regulations as uncertainty lingers around pending appeals.
On Friday, the Supreme Court upheld decisions in the U.S. Court of Appeal for the Fifth and Sixth circuits blocking the implementation of the Biden administration’s new version of rules for Title IX, which include the definition of sex discrimination to cover sexual orientation and gender identity, among others. In a 5-4 decision, the high court majority declined to allow the revised regulations to be partially enacted, finding that the U.S. Department of Education did not prove a sufficient basis to disturb lower courts’ interim conclusions that regulatory provisions are likely unlawful and intertwined with other aspects of Title IX.