Biden Admin Sued by 20 States Over Transgender School, Work Protections; Lawsuit Says Public Must Have Opportunity For Participation

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Biden Administration Sued By 20 States Over Transgender School, Work Protections
The EEOC and the DOE have issued guidance on policies concerning LQBTQ+ rights in schools and workplaces but a lawsuit seeks to prove federal agencies cannot change the law, which is Congress’ exclusive prerogative. File photo: ShutterStock.com, licensed.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – The Biden Administration is being sued by Attorney Generals from 20 states who aim to halt directives that extend federal sex discrimination protections to LGBTQ people, such as transgender girls participating in school sports to allowing individuals to use school or workplace bathrooms that align with their gender identity.

The lawsuit was filed on Monday in U.S. District Court in Knoxville by Tennessee Attorney General Herbert Slatery, who issued a statement arguing that the Biden Administration has no authority to impose these rules without legislative action on the part of Congress.

“This case is about two federal agencies changing law, which is Congress’ exclusive prerogative,” Slatery said.

The two agencies that Slatery is referring to are the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and the Department of Education (DOE), which have issued federal guidance on policies concerning LQBTQ+ rights in schools and workplaces, including biological boys who identify as girls being allowed to compete on girls’ sports teams, the ability to use bathrooms that correspond with a person’s gender identity, and being compelled to use a person’s preferred gender pronouns.

The guidance issued by the DOE and EEOC states that a person cannot be fired from their job for either their gender identity or sexual preferences, and it would be an act of “actionable discrimination” for an employer not to recognize a worker’s gender identity.

The lawsuit filed on Monday argues that the DOE and EEOC guidance “purports to resolve highly controversial and localized issues such as whether employers and schools may maintain sex-separated showers and locker rooms, whether schools must allow biological males to compete on female athletic teams, and whether individuals may be compelled to use another person’s preferred pronouns. But the agencies have no authority to resolve those sensitive questions, let alone to do so by executive fiat without providing any opportunity for public participation.”

The states participating in the lawsuit are Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota and West Virginia.

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