Feds Sue California Department of Education, Interscholastic Federation For ‘Illegal Sex Discrimination’

by Emily Washburn | July 10, 2025 | Culture Government Updates

The Department of Justice (DOJ) sued the California Department of Education (CDE) and California Interscholastic Federation (CIF) yesterday for violating Title IX,  just two days after the institutions refused to voluntarily keep boys out of girls sports and locker rooms.

The suit is the latest in an escalating national battle over the meaning and intent of Title IX — and whether taxpayers must fund educational programs that fail to protect girls.

“The Governor of California has previously admitted that it is ‘deeply unfair’ to force women and girls to compete with men and boys in competitive sports,” Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote in a press release announcing the suit, referencing remarks California Governor Gavin Newsom made about girls sports in March.

“But not only is it ‘deeply unfair,’ it is also illegal under federal law,” she continued. “This Department of Justice will continue its fight to protect equal opportunities for women and girls in sports.”

Title IX prevents sex discrimination in educational institutions and activities supported by the federal government. Despite receiving more than $44 billion in federal funding this fiscal year, according to the DOJ, CIF and CDE continue to violate Title IX by allowing students to join sports leagues consistent with their “gender identity,” rather than their biological sex.

“The results of these illegal policies are stark,” the DOJ’s complaint reads. “Girls are displaced from podiums, denied awards and miss out on critical visibility for college scholarships and recognition.”

It continues:

This discrimination is not only illegal and unfair but also demeaning, signaling to girls that their opportunities and achievements are secondary to accommodating boys.
It erodes the integrity of girls’ sports, diminishes their competitive experience and undermines the very purpose of Title IX: to provide equal access to educational benefits, including interscholastic athletics.

California and the Trump administration have been on a collision course over the integrity of girls’ sports and spaces since February, when President Donald Trump signed executive orders protecting women’s private spaces and prohibiting boys from playing girls sports in programs that receive federal funding.

The DOE launched an investigating into CIF after it publicly refused to follow the president’s order “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports.” Instead, CIF told Fox on February 7 it would continue enforcing California Education Code Section 221.5(f), which reads:

A pupil shall be permitted to participate in sex-segregated school programs and activities, including athletic teams and competitions, and use facilities consistent with his or her gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on the pupil’s records.

CIF hit the Trump administration’s radar again in May when AB Hernandez, a boy, qualified for California’s girls track and field championships.

“California … continues to illegally allow men to play in women’s sports,” President Trump weighed in on Hernandez’ qualification on social media. “Please be hereby advised that large scale funding will be held back, maybe permanently, if the executive order [“Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports”] is not adhered to.”

Hernandez went on to win two girls’ state titles.

The DOE Office of Civil Rights’ investigation found CIF and CDE in active violation of Title IX on June 25. The organizations were given ten days to voluntarily:

  • Instruct all recipients of federal funding under their control to stop allowing boys to compete in girls sports.
  • Rescind all awards, titles and records given to males and, if applicable, award them to the real winners.
  • “Send a personalized letter [to each female athlete to whom an individual recognition is restored] apologizing on behalf of the state of California for allowing her educational experience to be marred by sex discrimination.”
  • Propose a monitoring system to ensure all recipients of federal funding are following Title IX.

CIF and CDE formally refused the DOE’s requests on July 7. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon promptly referred the case to the DOJ, which filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California on July 9.

If the court rules in favor of the DOJ, CIF and CDE would have to keep boys out of girls sports or risk losing their massive federal endowment.

“It’s totally unfair to have men competing against women in sports, and also to share their intimate locker facilities [with them],” McMahon told Fox yesterday, continuing:

Women fought hard for these rights. It is the law, and the president means business with it.

The case is United States of America v. California Interscholastic Federation and California Department of Education. You can read the Daily Citizen’s detailed analysis of the allegations here.

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