PRESS RELEASE: DFI Files Amicus Brief Supporting U.S. Department of Education’s Federal Funding Cuts to New York City Schools Violating Title IX

WASHINGTON — The Defense of Freedom Institute for Policy Studies (DFI) filed an amicus brief urging a federal court to uphold the U.S. Department of Education’s decision to discontinue Magnet Schools Assistance Program (MSAP) funding to New York City Public Schools (NYCPS) over policies that violate Title IX.

At the center of the case are New York City Public Schools’ Guidelines on Gender Identity, which the brief explains encompass all aspects of student life, including pronoun use, sports, access to bathrooms and locker rooms, curriculum, and more. DFI argues that these Guidelines extend Title IX beyond its lawful scope and directly conflict with the statute’s longstanding interpretation.

For more than fifty years, Congress, federal regulators, and the courts have consistently understood Title IX to prohibit discrimination on the basis of biological sex. DFI’s brief explains that attempts to redefine the statute through guidance conflict with the law’s text and decades of binding precedent.

“Title IX is not ambiguous, and compliance is not optional,” said Donald Daugherty, Jr., senior litigation counsel for the Defense of Freedom Institute. “School districts cannot demand federal funding while rejecting federal civil rights law.”

The brief also notes that the Biden administration’s 2021 Title IX guidance — relied upon by NYCPS — has been repeatedly rejected or vacated by federal courts and carries no legal force. Likewise, the Supreme Court’s decision in Bostock v. Clayton County, which addressed Title VII employment law, does not apply to Title IX.

DFI’s brief emphasizes that conditioning federal education funds on compliance with Title IX is not punitive or political, but a well-established principle of constitutional law. DFI argues that allowing school districts to receive federal funds while disregarding the statute’s requirements would undermine the integrity of federal civil rights protections nationwide.

To read DFI’s brief, click here.