The U.S. Department of Education announced Monday it would rescind the Biden administration’s 2024 interpretation of Title IX, which expanded protections against sex-based discrimination to include sexual orientation and gender identity. The move restores the 2020 regulatory text from the Trump administration, following a federal judge’s decision last year to strike down the 2024 rule.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon confirmed the change in an interview with OutKick, stating the action clarifies existing regulations for schools, students, and parents. McMahon emphasized that the department would enforce the 2020 regulations, which do not recognize gender identity as a protected class under Title IX. Courts had already invalidated the Biden-era rule, and the department had announced in January 2025 that it would revert to the earlier standards.
McMahon cited Title IX’s original intent—ensuring equal opportunities for women in sports—as the rationale for the reversal. She argued that the 2024 rule undermined protections for female athletes by allowing transgender students to compete in sex-segregated sports based on gender identity rather than biological sex. "We're just acknowledging that boys and men are in boys and men's sports and girls are in theirs," McMahon said.
The Biden administration’s 2024 rule had expanded Title IX’s protections to cover discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, aligning with the Supreme Court’s 2020 Bostock v. Clayton County decision. However, the separate proposal addressing athletic team eligibility was withdrawn in December 2024 after legal challenges. The Trump administration had previously pursued its interpretation of Title IX through investigations, funding restrictions, and referrals to the Department of Justice, including the formation of a Title IX Special Investigations Team in April 2025.
McMahon did not specify a new compliance deadline for schools but stated that institutions should return to the 2020 regulations immediately. The department’s announcement follows a pattern of policy reversals under the current administration, which has prioritized biological sex as the defining factor for sports participation and other sex-segregated activities.