Proposed Rule2024-30921
Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance: Sex-Related Eligibility Criteria for Male and Female Athletic Teams; Withdrawal
Primary source
Metadata and text below are from the Federal Register, a public-domain U.S. government work. Always verify the official published version before relying on it for any legal matter.
Published
December 26, 2024
Issuing agencies
Education Department
Abstract
The U.S. Department of Education (Department) is withdrawing the notice of proposed rulemaking entitled "Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance: Sex-Related Eligibility Criteria for Male and Female Athletic Teams" published in the Federal Register on April 13, 2023. The proposed rule would have amended the regulations implementing Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX).
Full Text
<html>
<head>
<title>Federal Register, Volume 89 Issue 247 (Thursday, December 26, 2024)</title>
</head>
<body><pre>
[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 247 (Thursday, December 26, 2024)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 104936-104937]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2024-30921]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
34 CFR Part 106
[Docket ID ED-2022-OCR-0143]
RIN 1870-AA19
Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or
Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance: Sex-Related
Eligibility Criteria for Male and Female Athletic Teams; Withdrawal
AGENCY: Office for Civil Rights, Department of Education.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking; withdrawal.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Education (Department) is withdrawing
the notice of proposed rulemaking entitled ``Nondiscrimination on the
Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal
Financial Assistance: Sex-Related Eligibility Criteria for Male and
Female Athletic Teams'' published in the Federal Register on April 13,
2023. The proposed rule would have amended the regulations implementing
Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX).
[[Page 104937]]
DATES: The notice of proposed rulemaking published in the Federal
Register on April 13, 2023, 88 FR 22860, is withdrawn as of December
20, 2024.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Bianca Costello, U.S. Department of
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue SW, Fifth Floor, Washington, DC 20202.
Telephone: (202) 219-2126. Email: <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#c1a3a8a0afa2a0efa2aeb2b5a4adadae81a4a5efa6aeb7"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="9ffdf6fef1fcfeb1fcf0ecebfaf3f3f0dffafbb1f8f0e9">[email protected]</span></a>.
If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability and
wish to access telecommunications relay services, please dial 7-1-1.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
On April 13, 2023, the Department published a notice of proposed
rulemaking titled ``Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education
Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance: Sex-
Related Eligibility Criteria for Male and Female Athletic Teams''
(Athletics NPRM) in the Federal Register that proposed amending 34 CFR
106.41 of the Department's regulations implementing Title IX. 88 FR
22860. The intent of the Athletics NPRM was to ``propose a regulatory
standard under Title IX that would govern a recipient's adoption or
application of sex-related criteria that would limit or deny a
student's eligibility to participate on a male or female athletic team
consistent with their gender identity.'' Id. The Department's proposed
rule provided that, if a recipient adopts or applies sex-related
criteria that would limit or deny a student's eligibility to
participate on a male or female team consistent with their gender
identity, such criteria must, for each sport, level of competition, and
grade or educational level: (i) be substantially related to the
achievement of an important educational objective, and (ii) minimize
harms to students whose opportunity to participate on a male or female
team consistent with their gender identity would be limited or denied.
88 FR 22891.
The Department invited the public to comment on all aspects of the
Athletics NPRM, as well as the Regulatory Impact Analysis. In response,
the Department received more than 150,000 public comments on the
Athletics NPRM during the 30-day comment period.
Withdrawal of the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and Termination of the
Rulemaking Proceeding
The Department reviewed and considered all comments submitted
during the comment period and appreciates the time and effort spent by
commenters in sharing their views with the Department. Commenters
offered a broad spectrum of opinions on the Athletics NPRM. Some
commenters expressed general support for the proposed regulation, and
some asked the Department to modify the proposed regulation to provide
for more students to participate on a sex-separate athletic team
consistent with their gender identity, particularly at the elementary
and secondary school levels. Other commenters opposed the proposed
regulation in its entirety and asked the Department to withdraw the
Athletics NPRM. Numerous commenters expressed concerns about the
application of the proposed regulation in practice, arguing that the
proposed regulation was unclear or too complex for recipients to
implement, and many commenters offered alternative regulatory text for
the Department's consideration to clarify, simplify, elaborate on, or
substantively change the focus and impact of the proposed rule.
Additionally, a significant number of commenters included discussions
of case law, scientific studies and research papers, and existing
athletic association policies and practices regarding athletic
eligibility criteria that, according to the commenters, supported the
adoption, modification, or withdrawal of the proposed regulation.
The Department recognizes that there are multiple pending lawsuits
related to the application of Title IX in the context of gender
identity, including lawsuits related to Title IX's application to
athletic eligibility criteria in a variety of factual contexts. In
light of the comments received and those various pending court cases,
the Department has determined not to regulate on this issue at this
time. Therefore, the Department hereby withdraws the Athletics NPRM and
terminates this rulemaking proceeding. We do not intend for a final
rule to be issued on this NPRM. If, in the future, we decide it is
appropriate to issue regulations on this topic, we will do so via a new
notice of proposed rulemaking, subject to the requirements of the
Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. 551, et seq.
To the extent the Department receives complaints of discrimination
about a recipient's obligation to provide equal opportunity to
participate in athletics regardless of sex, it will continue to apply
the longstanding legal standards reflected in the athletics regulations
at 34 CFR 106.41 and in U.S. Dep't of Health, Educ., and Welfare,
Office for Civil Rights, A Policy Interpretation: Title IX and
Intercollegiate Athletics, 44 FR 71413 (Dec. 11, 1979), <a href="https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1979-12-11/pdf/FR-1979-12-11.pdf">https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/FR-1979-12-11/pdf/FR-1979-12-11.pdf</a>.
The Athletics NPRM issued on April 13, 2023, is hereby withdrawn,
and the rulemaking proceeding for that NPRM is terminated as of the
date of publication of this notice in the Federal Register.
Accessible Format: On request to the program contact person listed
under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT, individuals with disabilities
can obtain this document in an accessible format. The Department will
provide the requestor with an accessible format that may include Rich
Text Format (RTF) or text format (txt), a thumb drive, an MP3, braille,
large print, audiotape, compact disc, or other accessible format.
Electronic Access to This Document: The official version of this
document is the document published in the Federal Register. You may
access the official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of
Federal Regulations at <a href="http://www.govinfo.gov">www.govinfo.gov</a>. At this site you can view this
document, as well as all other Department documents published in the
Federal Register, in text or Portable Document Format (PDF). To use
PDF, you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available free at the
site.
You may also access Department documents published in the Federal
Register by using the article search feature at
<a href="http://www.federalregister.gov">www.federalregister.gov</a>. Specifically, through the advanced search
feature at this site, you can limit your search to documents published
by the Department.
Miguel Cardona,
Secretary of Education.
[FR Doc. 2024-30921 Filed 12-20-24; 2:00 pm]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P
</pre><script data-cfasync="false" src="/cdn-cgi/scripts/5c5dd728/cloudflare-static/email-decode.min.js"></script></body>
</html>Indexed from Federal Register on December 26, 2024.
This is legal information, not legal advice. Laws vary by jurisdiction and change frequently. Always verify current law with official sources and consult a licensed attorney in your jurisdiction for advice on your specific situation.