FILE - AB Hernandez, a transgender student at Jurupa Valley High School, competes in the high jump at the California high school track-and-field championships in Clovis, Calif., May 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
FILE - AB Hernandez, a transgender student at Jurupa Valley High School, competes in the high jump at the California high school track-and-field championships in Clovis, Calif., May 31, 2025. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
The Trump administration said Friday it's investigating the Oregon Department of Education after receiving a complaint from a conservative non-profit group alleging the state was violating civil rights law by allowing transgender girls to compete on girls sports teams.
It's the latest escalation in the Republican administration’s effort to from women’s sports teams nationwide. President signed an executive order in February to from participating on sports teams consistent with their gender identity.
The administration says transgender athlete policies violate , the 1972 federal law that bans discrimination in education based on sex. Proponents of Trump’s ban say it restores fairness in athletic competitions, but opponents say bans are an attack on transgender youth.
The U.S. Education Department's Office of Civil Rights opened the Oregon investigation based on a complaint by the that alleges high-school aged female athletes had lost medals and competitive opportunities to transgender athletes. It follows a probe launched earlier this year into and the state’s governing body for high school sports over alleged violations of Title IX for allowing trans girls to compete in girls sports.
Earlier this month, the administration for allowing transgender girls to compete on girls sports teams, alleging the policy violates federal law. Trump also alleging Maine violated Title IX by allowing trans girls and women to compete against other female athletes.
Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor said in a release Friday that the administration won't let educational institutions receive federal funds "to continue trampling upon women’s rights.â€
“If Oregon is permitting males to compete in women’s sports, it is allowing these males to steal the accolades and opportunities that female competitors have rightfully earned through hard work and grit, while callously disregarding women’s and girls’ safety, dignity, and privacy," Trainor said.
A spokesperson for the Oregon Department of Education said it doesn’t comment on pending investigations. A spokesperson for the Oregon School Activities Association said the group had no additional comment at this time.
Oregon law allows trans students to compete on sex-segregated sports teams that match their “consistently asserted gender identity†and says they can’t be excluded on the basis of their gender identity alone.
Three high school track-and-field athletes say that violates Title IX, and filed a lawsuit against Oregon in early July seeking to overturn all sports records set by transgender girl athletes and prevent them from participating in girls sporting events.
The complaint filed in U.S. District Court in Oregon alleges the state’s policy harmed the athletes through loss of competition, advancement to higher events, and the ability to earn titles or secure scholarships. The lawsuit cited at least one track-and-field event at a Portland high school this spring where a trans athlete won two races and set season records.
More than two dozen states have enacted laws barring transgender women and girls from participating in certain sports competitions. Some policies have been blocked in court. The has agreed to hear a case over state restrictions on which sports teams transgender athletes can join.
