The Education Department will scrap Biden-era Title IX rules that sought to bolster nondiscrimination protections based on sexual orientation and gender identity, officials announced Monday, marking a return to rules from the first Trump administration.
The regulations, initially released in 2020, outline how schools must handle reports of sexual misconduct, including setting a stricter definition for what constitutes sexual harassment and giving more due process rights to those accused.
The rules, which take effect Tuesday, will not change much for schools. The Trump administration has been enforcing its own rules, including targeting schools that allow transgender athletes to play on girls’ and women’s sports teams, since the president took office last year.
“We will continue to relentlessly champion equal opportunity for all Americans and hold accountable any school or college that violates the rights, privacy, or athletic opportunities of our women and girls,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement Monday.
Some advocates have criticized the change, saying the Biden administration rules — which faced significant legal challenges — attempted to strengthen protections for vulnerable groups. “Instead of enforcing protections for students, they’re rescinding them,” Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, said of the Trump administration.
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