As 2025 begins and a new administration prepares to take office, a District Court in the Eastern District of Kentucky has set aside the April 2024 Title IX regulations put forth by the Biden administration.
What does this mean for school districts?
School districts are now obligated to follow the 2020 Title IX regulations. Districts that have adopted policies consistent with the 2024 regulations should work with legal counsel to amend their policies to be consistent with the 2020 regulations. Schools with active investigations operating under the parameters of the 2024 regulations should evaluate them on a case-by-case basis and contact legal counsel for next steps. All Pennsylvania school districts must continue to abide by the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act.
How did this happen?
In conjunction with the Loper decision and the new authority the U.S. Supreme Court has given courts when deciding if a government agency has acted within its authority, the Kentucky court in State of Tennessee v. Cardona fully vacated the 2024 regulations via vacatur. Vacatur is the judicial power to void a regulation. By universally vacating the 2024 Title IX regulations, the Kentucky federal court determined that the rules are invalid and will no longer have legal effect against schools nationwide. An appeal is unlikely considering President Trump’s promise to undo the 2024 regulations once in office.
For more information on the various legal challenges surrounding the 2024 Title IX regulations, review our September alert.
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