In response to numerous inquiries from educators about the recent federal “significant guidance letter” on school restroom access for transgender students, Attorney General Luther Strange has written the Alabama State Board of Education with his view of the legality of the federal directive.

Attorney General Strange told the State Board of Education the federal guidance letter is an attempt to rewrite federal law and should therefore be ignored until the issue is settled in federal court.

“Although the (federal guidance) letter states that it ‘does not add requirements to applicable law,’ it clearly purports to change the law by redefining the word ‘sex’ in Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 to mean ‘gender identity,’” Attorney General Strange wrote.

“…Title IX is about discrimination ‘on the basis of sex,’ not gender identity.”

“On May 25, I filed suit on behalf of Alabama, along with officials from ten other States, to prevent the Department of Justice and Department of Education from enforcing the guidance letter. This lawsuit will determine whether the Department of Justice and Department of Education have the authority to implement the policy announced in the guidance… Until the lawsuit is resolved, I would encourage educators to simply ignore the guidance letter.”