IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF KANSAS STATE OF KANSAS, et al., Plaintiffs, v.
Case No. 24-4041-JWB
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION, et al., Defendants. MEMORANDUM AND ORDER This matter is before the court on Plaintiffs’ motion for a stay/preliminary injunction. (Doc. 24.) The motion has been fully briefed and is ripe for decision. (Docs. 25, 38, 43, 45, 47.) Plaintiffs seek an injunction forbidding the “Final Rule”—as that term is defined herein—from going into effect on August 1, 2024. (Doc. 24 at 1.) The court held a hearing on the motion on June 20, 2024. For the reasons set forth herein, Plaintiffs’ motion for a preliminary injunction is GRANTED. I.
Facts and Procedural History At its core, this case involves statutory interpretation of the word “sex” as that term is used
in Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972, 20 U.S.C. § 1681, et. seq. The court begins with the history of Title IX and a review of the previous regulations issued by Defendant United States Department of Education (the “DoE”). In short, Title IX’s text mandates that “[n]o person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance . . . .” 20 U.S.C. § 1681(a). Title IX was enacted on June 23, 1972, after a lengthy 1