Idaho Gov. Little accuses feds of ‘radical redefinition of gender,’ issues executive order
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Becca Savransky, Idaho Statesman
BOISE (Idaho Statesman) — Standing on the Capitol steps, Gov. Brad Little praised Idaho for being the first state in the country to pass a law banning transgender women from participating in female sports.
“Idaho stands with female athletes,” the crowd chanted, just before Little signed an executive order that he said would ensure girls and women receive equal opportunities in sports.
The order directs the Idaho State Board of Education to work with the State Department of Education to ensure public schools follow state laws on women’s sports. Schools in Idaho are already required to follow state and federal laws.
Little’s order also directs the Idaho State Board of Education to update schools on the legal challenges to the new Title IX rule, which would have expanded sex discrimination to include sexual orientation and gender identity. A federal judge temporarily blocked the new Title IX rule from taking effect in Idaho and other states in June.
The State Board of Education is also directed to “guarantee every female student in Idaho be provided equal opportunity in sports and school to the fullest extent” guaranteed under the original Title IX rules, the executive order reads.
“These girls and women and their families dedicate their time, passion and often their money to improve their skills, to compete and win,” Little said. “That is why it is so important for us as a state to do all we can to protect and defend women’s sports.”
Little stood next to Riley Gaines, a former competitive swimmer who has been an outspoken voice against trans women participating in women’s sports, as Gaines talked about her experience competing with a trans woman.
“I can wholeheartedly attest to the unfair competition,” she said. “I can wholeheartedly attest to the extreme discomfort in the locker room.”
Rep. Barbara Ehardt, R-Idaho Falls, who has championed this issue in Idaho and around the country, also spoke with Little and Gaines.
Little: Title IX rule is a ‘radical redefinition of gender’
A federal judge in June ruled in favor of a preliminary injunction after four Republican attorneys general, including Idaho’s Raúl Labrador, sued the federal government over the new Title IX rule, which President Joe Biden’s administration said would protect LGBTQ+ students in school. Labrador argued that the new regulations undermined the purpose of Title IX.
The new rule would have expanded sex discrimination to not only include gender identity and sexual orientation, but also pregnancy or related conditions. The U.S. Supreme Court rejected an attempt by the Biden administration to lift the block.
Little called the new Title IX rule a “radical redefinition of gender” and said it would jeopardize the work Idaho has done.
Idaho has been a leader in passing laws that target LGBTQ+ people in the state. Many of those laws are now being litigated.
A Boise State University student sued the state after the Legislature passed a law banning trans women from sports that align with their gender identity in schools in 2020. Idaho asked the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case last month.
In recent years, lawmakers also passed bills that bar transgender children from accessing gender-affirming care, prohibit teachers from using pronouns that differ from a student’s sex at birth without parent approval, and ban Medicaid and state health insurance funds from being used for gender-affirming care.