11th Circuit blocks Title IX final rule from taking effect in Alabama

The 11th Circuit Court of Appeals granted a request for an administrative injunction on behalf of Alabama, Florida, Georgia and South Carolina states looking to pause the enforcement of the Biden administration’s final rule for Title IX, originally slated to take place Thursday.

Attorney General Steve Marshall signed on to the multi-state litigation in April along with the Independent Women’s Law Center, the Independent Women’s Network, Parents Defending Education, and Speech First.

On Tuesday, Marshall released a statement that “Title IX emphatically does not require schools to open up women’s bathrooms, locker rooms, and showers to men. As such, we have already appealed this decision and will seek emergency relief.” 

He also added that “Alabama’s young women deserve better.”

The ruling came just a day after a federal judge, Judge Annemarie Carney Axon of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, struck down the attempt on Tuesday. 

In April, the Biden Administration and the U.S. Department of Education announced that Title IX, which had previously only prohibited sex-based discrimination in educational settings that are provided federal funding, would be updated with a final rule. The final rule under Title IX would also protect from discrimination based on gender identity and sexual orientation in education settings that receive federal funding. 

Since the final rule was announced, it’s been met with backlash from GOP states. Currently, there are 26 states with lawsuits hoping to block the regulations from taking effect.

The states with temporary injunctions are Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, West Virginia and Wyoming. 

Colleges outside of these states are also blocking the regulations. Judge John Broomes of the U.S. District Court for the District of Kansas issued a preliminary injunction for the multi-litigation case for Kansas, Alaska, Utah and Wyoming alongside Female Athletes United, Young America’s Foundation and Moms for Liberty to block the regulations in these states. The court also asked the associated organizations to submit a list of schools attended by students who were affiliated with their group to fall under the injunction, regardless of their state’s stance. 

Schools that do not fall under an injunction are likely to adhere to the 2024 regulations.