FL and the feds teed up for fight over new Title IX rule and school districts caught in the middle

Governor Ron DeSantis is going to war with the US Department of Education over a new rule that expands Title IX to protect gender identity.

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The new rule from the US Department of Education prohibits schools from adopting policies that prevent people from participating in programs or activities consistent with their gender identity.

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It’s set to take effect in August and already, Governor Ron DeSantis is promising to fight back.

“We are not going to let Joe Biden try to inject men in women’s activities. We are not going to let Joe Biden undermine the rights of parents,” said DeSantis in a video posted to social media Thursday.

Some Florida laws will likely conflict with the new federal rule.

Specifically, the state’s prohibition on transgender women playing in women’s sports and a law passed last year that requires bathrooms and locker rooms be segregated by biological sex.

Jon Harris Maurer with Equality Florida argued the Florida laws in question discriminate against trans youth.

“This position from the Governor is outrageous,” said Jon Harris Maurer with Equality Florida.

A memo from Florida Education Commissioner Manny Diaz sent this week directed school leaders to refrain from implementing any changes to comply with the new federal rule.

“Instead of implementing Congress’s clear directive to prevent discrimination based on biological sex, the Biden Administration maims the statute beyond recognition in an attempt to gaslight the country into believing that biological sex no longer has any meaning,” Diaz wrote in the letter.

But Maurer noted by failing to comply with the new rule, Florida schools will be put at risk of losing their federal funding.

“We’re talking about an environment where Duval County Public Schools has already identified 30 schools that may be at risk for closure because of funding scarcity and low enrollment. So, taking a position that is clearly at odds with federal protections that should control here is incredibly outrageous and really, again, putting our students’ education at risk,” said Maurer.

We asked Northeast Florida’s three largest school districts whether they plan to follow federal or state guidance when the rule takes effect in August.

St. Johns County Public Schools said it had not yet discussed how to move forward on the issue.

We’re still awaiting responses from Clay and Duval.

The new rule will almost certainly be challenged by the State of Florida.

Similarly, it will also likely create new opportunities for LGBTQ groups challenge Florida’s laws on transgender sports participation and restroom access on Title IX grounds.

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