Connecticut transgender sports policy discriminated against biological girls, feds conclude

The U.S. Education Department's Office for Civil Rights has determined Connecticut schools' transgender athletics policy improperly discriminated against biological girls.

The finding was contained in a Letter of Impending Enforcement Action dated May 15 that concluded biological females were negatively impacted because the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference and public schools allowed biological males to compete against them.

"For the aforementioned reasons, OCR also determined that the CIAC, Glastonbury, Bloomfield, Hartford, Cromwell, Canton, and Danbury treated student-athletes differently based on sex, by denying benefits and opportunities to female students that were available to male students," the letter states.

The letter also notes that the Education Department's "OCR determined that the CIAC denied athletic benefits and opportunities to female student-athletes competing in interscholastic girls' track in the state of Connecticut through the Revised Transgender Participation Policy, in violation of the regulation implementing Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (Title IX), at 34 C.F.R. § 106.41(a)."

OCR said that while it had previously informed the CIAC and the schools that they "had discriminated against female student athletes," it is issuing the letter because none of the entities has yet agreed to resolutions to address the violations.

The letter warns the athletic conference and schools could face additional consequences.

"OCR will either initiate administrative proceedings to suspend, terminate, or refuse to grant or continue and defer financial assistance to the CIAC, Glastonbury, Bloomfield, Hartford, Cromwell, Canton, and Danbury, or refer the cases to the U.S. Department of Justice for judicial proceedings to enforce any rights of the United States under its laws," the letter states.