Biden dismantles Trump-era Title IX rules, sidesteps issue of trans athletes in girls' sports

Former Education Secretary Betsy DeVos reacts to a proposed change in Title IX and comments on the transgender athlete debate.

The Biden administration has unveiled new rules to safeguard LGBTQ+ students and change the ways in which sexual harassment and assault claims are adjudicated on campus.

The new provisions are part of a revised Title IX regulation issued by the Education Department, fulfilling a campaign pledge by President Biden to revamp those issued during the Trump administration.

Missing from the new rule, however, is a policy forbidding schools from enacting outright bans on transgender athletes competing against biological females. 

OPINION: BIDEN’S TITLE IX RULE ADDS DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN THROUGH THE BACKDOOR

Education Secretary Miguel Cardona says  the new rule makes "crystal clear that everyone can access schools that are safe, welcoming and that respect their rights." (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

The Biden administration was widely expected to bring in such a policy but has instead put the provision on hold. The delay is widely seen as a political maneuver during an election year in which Republicans have rallied around bans on transgender athletes in girls' sports.

Under the new rules, sex discrimination includes discrimination based on gender identity as well as sexual orientation. A school must not separate or treat people differently based on sex, except in limited circumstances.

Biden is also officially undoing sexual assault rules put in place by his predecessor and current election-year opponent, former President Donald Trump. 

The final policy drew praise from victims' advocates, while Republicans said it erodes the rights of accused students.

The new rule makes "crystal clear that