Portland, Maine
AP
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Maine officials said on Friday that the state would not comply with a Prohibit transgender athletes In secondary sports following a Trump administration, noting that the State had violated the laws on anti -discrimination by allowing students to participate.
The US education department said in March that a survey had concluded that the Maine Ministry of Education had violated the Federal IX law by allowing transgender girls to participate in the women’s teams. The survey followed a Public disagreement Between the Democratic Governor of Maine Janet Mills and the President Donald Trump At a meeting of governors in February.
The United States Department’s Department office for civil rights issued a final warning on March 31, telling the state that it had to comply with the law within 10 working days or cope with the application of the US Ministry of Justice. This deadline arrived on Friday and the education department said that it had referred its investigation to the DoJ for subsequent application.
Maine and the federal government are at a dead endAs the State will not sign a resolution proposed by the Trump administration to resolve the disagreement by prohibiting transgender athletes, said the deputy general prosecutor of Maine Sarah Forster in a letter in the Department of Education.
“Nothing in title IX or its implementation regulations prohibit schools from allowing transgender girls and women to participate in the sports teams of girls and women,” said Forster’s letter. “Your letters to date do not cite a single case that is held like this.”
Trump said the state is likely to lose federal funding if he does not comply. On Friday, the Department of Education said that it also took measures towards the end of the financing of the education of Maine.
“The department has given Maine all the opportunities to comply with title IX, but state leaders have stubbornly refused to do so, by choosing rather to prioritize an extremist ideological program on the security, privacy and dignity of their students,” said Craig Trainor, acting assistant secretary for the office of the Department of Education for Civil Rights. “The Maine Ministry of Education will now have to defend its discriminatory practices before an administrative law judge of the ministry and before a federal court against the Ministry of Justice.”
Federal funding is essential to Maine schools. Maine obtained $ 358 million in federal funding for nursery schools in the 12th year in 2021-222, or 10% of its budget, according to census data. About 13% of this money went to title I, 14% in special education and 20% in nutrition programs for children such as school lunches. Title I provides additional financial assistance to school districts for children from low -income families.
Almost half of the federal funds were simply marked as “others”, which probably emphasizes the substantial that the schools of COVVI-19 rescue funds obtained that year. Before the pandemic, Maine obtained 6% of its funding from federal sources, nearly $ 185 million in 2018-2019.
The question of school financing and transgender participation in sports in Maine began to bubble when Mills and Trump fought on the subject at the February meeting at the White House. During the meeting, Trump threatened to withdraw federal funding from Maine if the State did not comply with its decree prohibits transgender sports athletes.
Mills replied: “We will see you in court.”
Shortly after, the Department of Education and the United States Ministry of Health and Social Services launched state surveys.
Health and social services officials said in March that the Maine’s Ministry of Education, the Association of Maine directors and a secondary school were each in violation of title IX due to the participation of transgender athletes. The Department of Health has already referred the question to the DOJ for application before the court.
The Association of Directors and the School District said they would not comply with an agreement proposed to prohibit athletes.
The Republicans of Maine, who are in the minority in the two chambers of the Legislative Assembly, put pressure on the State Democrats to resolve the surveys. The republican leader of the room Billy Bob Faulkingham, speaking at a press conference, said that Mills created a “hostage situation” which endorses federal funding.
“The Governor and his administration holds the Maine’s schools and the education of Maine under hostage,” said Faulkingham. “This impasse will not end well for the state of Maine and its financing of education.”
The LGBTQ + rights groups in Maine defended the state approach. “We do not give in and we do not give up our trans community”, Equalitymaine said In an article on social networks.
Federal authorities also said that they were investigating Maine due to the claim that the school districts violate the federal law by retaining information on the transition of parents’ students.