A federal judge on Thursday granted Carroll ISD a temporary injunction in its lawsuit to block new Title IX changes from going into effect.
In his ruling, U.S. District Judge for the Northern District of Texas Reed O’Connor said the Biden administration’s rule extending protections to LGBTQ+ students and banning discrimination based on gender identity is “likely unlawful” and “risks irreparable harm to Carroll ISD.”
“Carroll ISD estimates that these changes will cost schools in its district more than $98 million in the first year alone,” he wrote. “The compliance costs also go beyond monetary harm given the potential to infringe on constitutional rights, which is per se irreparable injury.”
Title IX went into law more than 50 years ago to prohibit sex-based discrimination.
Attorneys with the Christian legal ministry Alliance Defending Freedom argued in court Monday on behalf of the district that the Biden administration’s changes to the landmark statute would instead harm female students.
O’Connor wrote the changes have “significant problems” and would undermine years of progress for women and girls.
“"Perhaps the most surprising moments from the hearing are those that revealed the shocking consequences and logical inconsistencies associated with the Final Rule,” he wrote. “Oral argument made clear that the Final Rule functionally displaces the statutory language 'on the basis of sex' with 'on the basis of gender identity.' Despite repeatedly stressing that no redefinition of sex exists in the Final Rule, in the same breath Defendants claim there is no material way to distinguish between sex and gender identity."
O’Connor concluded that “Carroll ISD is substantially likely to prevail on the merits” of the suit, based on conclusions of similar cases in other courts. He requested additional briefings by July 18.
KERA reached out for comment from the Department of Justice regarding the judge’s ruling but hasn’t yet heard back.
The rule was set to go into effect on Aug. 1
Bill Zeeble is KERA’s education reporter. Got a tip? Email Bill at bzeeble@kera.org. You can follow him on X @bzeeble.
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