The Biden administration proposed Thursday sweeping changes to Title IX on the anti-discrimination law’s 50th anniversary, seeking to fold gender identity into the definition …
The Biden administration proposed Thursday sweeping changes to Title IX on the anti-discrimination law’s 50th anniversary, seeking to fold gender identity into the definition of sex and roll back Trump-era due process protections in campus-assault cases. The proposed changes unveiled by Education Secretary Miguel Cardona would add “sexual orientation, gender identity and sex characteristics” to the 1972 law prohibiting discrimination in education based on sex.
“Our proposed changes would fully protect students from all forms of sex discrimination, instead of limiting some protections to sexual harassment alone, and make clear those protections include discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity,” said Mr. Cardona in his remarks. He acknowledged the heated debate over male-to-female transgender athletes, saying that the department “recognizes that standards for students participating on male and female athletic teams are evolving in real time.”
“That’s why we’ve decided to do a separate rulemaking on how schools may determine eligibility, while upholding Title IX’s nondiscrimination guarantee,” Mr. Cardona said. The proposed rule takes aim at the 2020 campus sexual-assault overhaul spearheaded by former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos increasing protections for student defendants, such as requiring schools to declare whether they are using the “preponderance of the evidence” or “clear and convincing evidence” standard.
“The proposed amendments will restore crucial protections for students who are victims of sexual harassment, assault, and sex-based discrimination — a critical safety net for survivors that was weakened under previous regulations,” said the Education Department.
