The Department of Education said transgender students are protected under Title IX, the federal civil rights law that prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school receiving federal money.
“Students cannot be discriminated against because of their sexual orientation or their gender identity,” Secretary of Education Miguel A. Cardona told the New York Times.
The Supreme Court affirmed Civil Rights Act workplace regulations protect gay and transgender people in a ruling last year. The Departments of Justice, Housing and Urban Development, and Health and Human Services have since relied on that ruling to craft policies protecting transgender people.
The Trump administration had done the opposite, undoing Obama-era policies that expanded protections for transgender students, and threatened to withhold funding from institutions.
Secretary Cardona told the Times this policy change puts schools on notice that the Biden Education Department “would not tolerate discrimination in schools receiving federal funds.”
How vocal the Biden White House will be about efforts across the nation to deny transgender Americans rights is uncertain. State legislatures have proposed more than 250 anti-LGBTQ bills in 2021, including at least 104 bills targeting transgender youth, according to the Human Rights Campaign. Most of the bills look to restrict access to healthcare or participation in team sports.
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Biden helped former President Obama revamp Title IX, but Trump-appointed former education secretary Betsy DeVos undid much of that guidance. Cardona said the Biden-led department is moving “as quickly as possible” to address that.