Office of Attorney General opposes challenges to the forthcoming regulations; Pennsylvania Human Relations Act continues to offer protections to students

Attorney General Michelle Henry is continuing efforts to protect all students from sex discrimination by joining with fifteen state Attorneys General to ensure new regulations  under Title IX go into effect as intended next month.

The U.S. Department of Education’s new regulations, set to go into effect August 1, 2024, clarify that Title IX’s prohibition against sex discrimination in education programs and activities that receive federal financial assistance includes sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex characteristics.

A federal judge in Kansas recently enjoined the U.S. Department of Education from enforcing the new regulations in certain states and against certain schools affecting certain plaintiffs.

While the Kansas ruling does not universally impact Pennsylvania, the action could affect certain schools in the Commonwealth.

Importantly, however, students in Pennsylvania are protected from discrimination on the basis of sex by the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act.

“All students deserve to learn in a safe environment free from harassment and discrimination,” Attorney General Henry said. “While there will be a limited number of schools and students impacted, and that number could expand, this decision from a Kansas federal court does not affect Pennsylvania law. We are allied with partners, like the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission, to ensure schools remain safe havens for student learning and achievement.”

PHRC Executive Director Chad Dion Lassiter, MSW stated, “The Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission is committed to its duty to protect all students from illegal discrimination. A student’s sexual orientation or gender identity should not prevent them from receiving a quality and equal education.”

As the Final Title IX Rule has been challenged around the country, the Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, together with the California Office of Attorney General and the New Jersey Office of Attorney General, have joined with other state attorneys general to defend the rule in a series of amicus briefs.

In one such case, the States of Kansas, Alaska, Utah, and Wyoming, “K.R.” (a minor), and three organizations (Moms for Liberty, Young America’s Foundation, and Female Athletes United) challenged the regulations. In two recent decisions, the U.S. District Court in Kansas prevented the U.S. Department of Education from enforcing the Final Title IX Rule against the Plaintiffs, including against the schools attended by the children of the current and prospective members of the organizational plaintiffs.

The Pennsylvania Human Relations Act protects students in “kindergartens, primary and secondary schools, high schools, academies, colleges and universities, extension courses and all educational institutions under the supervision of this Commonwealth” unless the schools are “in their nature distinctly private.”

Sex discrimination in Pennsylvania is defined by regulation to include “pregnancy, sex assigned at birth, gender, including a person’s gender identity or gender expression, affectional or sexual orientation, including heterosexuality, homosexuality, bisexuality and asexuality, differences of sex development, variations of sex characteristics or other intersex characteristics.”

To file a complaint, an individual can contact the PHRC at 717-787-4410. Information and resources are also available at www.pa.gov/en/agencies/phrc.