The Trump administration says Maine's education department has violated federal law by allowing trans athletes to participate in sports for girls and women.
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Civil Rights Office (OCR) notifies Maine Governor Janet Mills (D) and State Attorney General Aaron Frey (D). With a letter On February 25th, the company issued a “Notice of Violation” to the state's education department because it failed to comply with Title IX, a federal civil rights law that prohibits sex discrimination in schools and educational programs that receive government funds.
First reported notification Bangor Daily News On Wednesday, the Maine Education Department found it violated Title IX by equally refusing to compete in school sports “by enabling male athletes to compete with female athletes” at current and future athletic events.
“In comparison, male athletes are not subject to the increased safety or competitive concerns affecting women alone. This equal opportunity and lack of fair competition constitutes a violation of Title IX,” wrote Anthony F. Archeval, Director of Acting HHS OCR.
An OCR spokesman did not immediately return a request for comment.
The Main Principals Association, which manages high school sports in the state, said last month it would not ban transgender student-athletes on sports teams that match their gender identity, as signed by the executive order signed on February 5th, by President Trump. Mike Burnham, the organisation's executive director, said the order is in conflict with the state's anti-discrimination laws, including protection for transgender people.
In a letter to Mills and Frey, the OCR said the Maine education department failed to ensure that public schools following policies set by the Principal Association comply with federal non-discrimination laws.
The agency's discovery came just four days after the Federal Department of Education The investigation has begun I joined the Maine Education Department and the district that allowed transgender high school students to compete on the girls' track and field teams.
Rep. Laurel Libby (R) posted photos of the students as well as the student's names and dead names on her Facebook page (the names they used before they moved), attracting media attention around the country and driving schools to increase their policy and security presence. Libby's Democratic colleagues voted to denounce her in the post later last month.
A spokesman for Mills, who clashed with Trump over the state's rebellion against the executive order at a National Governors Association event in Washington last month, did not respond to a request for comment on the OCR letter.
“I think the results of this politically directed investigation have been decided almost in advance,” Mills said. In a statement At the start of the investigation. “Maine may be one of the first states to be investigated by his administration, but we are not the last.”
The Education Department has launched at least eight surveys of states, school districts and athletic associations since Trump's executive order on transgender athletes. In a letter to state officials last month, Attorney General Pam Bondy pledged prompt legal action against entities that refuse to implement restrictions on the order.
