Justice Department sues Maine over transgender athletes
Attorney General Pam Bondi announced a lawsuit against Maine’s Department of Education over the state’s refusal to ban transgender athletes.
- President Donald Trump took aim at California, saying the state “illegally” allows men to play in women’s sports, referring to a transgender female student athlete in the state.
- President Donald Trump warned he’d withhold federal funds from California if the state doesn’t comply, although he did not specify what funding, or how much, would be withheld.
- Earlier this year, California lawmakers rejected a bill that would have banned transgender women and girl athletes from participating in women’s and girl’s sports.
President Donald Trump is warning he’ll cut federal funding to California if the state does not comply with an executive order that seeks to bar transgender women and girls from participating in women’s sports.
The president made the announcement in a post to Truth Social on Tuesday, May 27, in response to a transgender female student athlete competing in California.
“California, under the leadership of Radical Left Democrat Gavin Newscum, continues to illegally allow ‘Men to Play in Women’s Sports,’” Trump’s Truth Social post read.
Trump said that “large-scale federal funding will be held back, maybe permanently,” if the executive order isn’t followed.
Presumably, Trump is referring to the executive order he signed in February, called “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” that targets transgender women and girls participating in women’s sports.
Trump is also “ordering local authorities, if necessary, to not allow” the athlete to compete in a state finals event.
Here’s what to know as this situation unfolds.
What federal funding in California will be cut back by Trump?
The president did not specify what funding would be cut back or the amount that would be withheld in his post on May 27.
However, the executive order states that it’s U.S. policy to “rescind all funds from educational programs that deprive women and girls of fair athletic opportunities.”
USA TODAY reported in February that schools receiving taxpayer money are “on notice” that they could lose federal funding if they don’t comply with the order.
The office of Gov. Gavin Newsom did not directly reply to the Desert Sun’s emailed questions about whether the California governor knows which funds would be withheld and how much.
The Desert Sun reached out to Trump’s office via a press intake form with similar questions regarding what federal funding would be withheld. The Trump Administration did not immediately respond to the Desert Sun’s inquiry.
What are California’s laws on transgender athletes competing in sports?
Earlier this year, California lawmakers rejected a bill that would have banned transgender women and girls from participating in girls’ and women’s sports. The bill sought to require that the California Interscholastic Federation prohibit athletes whose sex was assigned male at birth from participating in girls’ or women’s sports teams. The federation governs high school sports in California.
In California, Assembly Bill 1266 — which was passed in 2013 — requires that a student be allowed to participate on athletic teams and in competitions “consistent with his or her gender identity, irrespective of the gender listed on the pupil’s records,” among other “sex-segregated school programs and activities.”
“You have the right to play on a sports team that aligns with your gender identity,” reads a Know Your Rights webpage under California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s website.
How many transgender people are there in California?
In California, it’s estimated that only 1.93% of children ages 13 to 17 identify as transgender, according to a 2022 report from the Williams Institute, which describes itself as conducting independent research on sexual orientation and gender identity law and public policy based at the UCLA School of Law.
Additionally, in California, it’s estimated that less than 1% of adults 18 years old and older identify as transgender.
The Hill reported that NCAA President Charlie Baker said last year he was aware of “less than 10” transgender athletes out of the thousands of athletes in the U.S. in NCAA schools.
Paris Barraza is a trending reporter covering California news at The Desert Sun. Reach her at pbarraza@gannett.com.
