On Friday, May 26, 2023, the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) pushed back itsĀ planned May releaseĀ of both the final Title IX athletics and the broader Title IX rules until October 2023. The five-month delay change comes on the heels of the USDE having received more than 390, 000 comments during the one-month comment period, which ended on May 15th.
In fact, more than 240,000 public comments were received on the broader proposed Title IX rule, which would for the first time protect LGBTQ+ students under the federal anti-sex discrimination law. That number of comments are nearly twice as many as the USDE received during its last rulemaking on Title IX.
In addition, the USDE’sĀ athletics regulation proposalĀ received over 150,000 comments during the one-month comment period. Although that proposal would prohibit blanket bans of transgender students in athletics, it would allow schools to exclude transgender students from playing on sports teams aligning with their gender identities under some circumstances.
The new release date changes timelines for districts that were anticipating a potential fall implementation date for either or both of the new rules.
Both sets of rules are expected to be heavily litigated, regardless of their final form.
To read the official USDE blog,Ā click here.
Other source,Ā K-12 Dive.