South Dakota Republican Gov. Kristi Noem has vowed to fight back against the Biden administration's proposed set of Title IX rules to expand the meaning of sexual discrimination to include gender identity that would prevent schools and colleges from barring biologically male transgender athletes from competing on female sports teams.
Under the U.S. Department of Education’s proposed rule, no school or college that receives federal funding would be allowed to impose a "one-size-fits-all" policy that categorically bans transgender students from playing on sports teams consistent with their gender identity. Such policies would be considered a violation of Title IX.
"South Dakota will not allow this to stand. We will lead. We will defend our laws. Only girls will play girls’ sports," Noem wrote in a Thursday evening tweet.
"President Biden, we’ll see you in Court," she added.
BIDEN ADMIN RELEASES NEW TITLE IX REGULATIONS ON TRANSGENDER ISSUES IN SCHOOLS
"The U.S. Department of Education (Department) proposes to amend its regulations implementing Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX) to set out a standard 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," the Department of Education wrote Thursday.
The proposed regulation, according to the department, would "clarify Title IX’s application to such sex-related criteria and the obligation of schools and other recipients of Federal financial assistance from the Department (referred to below as ‘recipients’ or ‘schools’) that adopt or apply such criteria to do so consistent with Title IX’s nondiscrimination mandate."
Noem's warning of legal action against the Biden administration's proposal comes as the GOP-led South Dakota legislature works to take action to ensure that school sports are fair and that minors do not have access to certain types of gender care.
Last February, Noem signed into law a bill to ban transgender female athletes from participating in girls' or women's school sports. Noem — who has received an outpouring of support from Republicans for her stance on the issue — positioned her signing of the bill as a defense of Title IX, federal civil rights law that prohibits discrimination in school and education programs on the basis of sex.
"This bill's about fairness," the Republican said during a news conference after she signed the measure. "It's about allowing biological females … to compete fairly on a level playing field that gives them opportunities for success."
In a press release, the administration said the "proposed rule affirms that students benefit from the chance to join a school sports team to learn about teamwork, leadership, and physical fitness."
"The proposed rule would establish that policies violate Title IX when they categorically ban transgender students from participating on sports teams consistent with their gender identity just because of who they are. The proposed rule also recognizes that in some instances, particularly in competitive high school and college athletic environments, some schools may adopt policies that limit transgender students' participation. The proposed rule would provide schools with a framework for developing eligibility criteria that protects students from being denied equal athletic opportunity, while giving schools the flexibility to develop their own participation policies."
The proposed rule sends a political counterpunch toward a wave of Republican-led states that have sought to ban transgender athletes from competing in school sports that align with their gender identities. If finalized, the proposal would become enshrined as a provision of Title IX, the landmark gender equity legislation enacted in 1972.
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Earlier this year, Noem signed into law the "Help Not Harm" bill, which prohibits certain medical and surgical interventions for transgender minors.
"South Dakota’s kids are our future," Noem said in February amid her signing of the measure. "With this legislation, we are protecting kids from harmful, permanent medical procedures. I will always stand up for the next generation of South Dakotans."
State Republicans introduced the bill in January, which keeps children under 18 from accessing puberty-blocking drugs, hormone therapy or surgeries that enable them to present as a gender different from the sex on their birth certificate.
Fox News' Andrew Mark Miller and Michael Lee contributed to this article.
