U.S. Senators Katie Britt, Marsha Blackburn, Colleagues Seek to Permanently Restore Biological Sex Standard

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senators Katie Britt (R-Ala.), Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), and nine of their Senate colleagues introduced the Title IX Clarification Act, which would ensure Title IX anti-discrimination requirements tied to federal education funding are based on biological sex and not "sexual orientation or gender identity."

"President Trump has taken decisive action through executive orders to protect young women on campuses across the country. Now, we must ensure these protections are codified into federal law," said Senator Britt. "We saw the Biden-Harris Administration cave to the woke mob and allow Title IX to be abused in ways that permitted biological men to infringe on girls' sports and spaces. We cannot let that happen again, and this legislation will restore regulatory clarity to ensure it does not."

For more than 50 years, Title IX has protected equal educational opportunities by prohibiting discrimination on the basis of sex. In recent years, however, woke ideology has sought to redefine the law beyond Congress' original intent, creating uncertainty for schools and undermining protections for women and girls.

At the beginning of his second term, President Trump revoked a Biden-era Executive Order that directed the U.S. Secretary of Education to interpret Title IX anti-discrimination language "on the basis of sex" to cover "discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity."

The Title IX Clarification Act would clarify that the term "sex" refers only to an individual's biologically determined status as male or female where Title IX prohibits discrimination based on sex in education programs or activities receiving federal financial assistance.

"The Biden administration weaponized Title IX to force women to compete with men in sports and allow men to invade women's spaces," said Senator Blackburn. "Thankfully, President Trump restored common sense in Title IX, and now Congress must codify these protections for women into law to prevent future abuse. The Title IX Clarification Act would ensure that common sense, not leftist ideology, governs federal education funding tied to Title IX requirements to protect young women."

Specifically, this legislation would restore Title IX's original meaning by affirming Congress' original intent to protect women's educational opportunities and address concerns raised by the Supreme Court during the January 2026 oral arguments regarding transgender participation in women's sports during which Justice Neil Gorsuch noted that Congress has not clearly defined Title IX's requirements for states accepting federal funds and suggested that any departure from the historical understanding of "sex" as biological sex raises Spending Clause concerns unless Congress acts explicitly. It would also establish clear statutory definitions of "male" and "female" within Title IX, eliminating ambiguity and preventing taxpayer dollars from being used to support ideological redefinitions of sex.

Senators Britt and Blackburn were joined by Senators Jim Justice (R-W.Va.), Ted Budd (R-N.C.), Jim Risch (R-Idaho), Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.), Rick Scott (R-Fla.), Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Steve Daines (R-Mont.), and Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.).

Senator Britt is a champion of preserving Title IX protections for women and girls in sports. She is a strong supporter of the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2025 and recently helped introduce the Daughters of the American Revolution Membership Integrity Act to protect the status of biological women in the Daughters of the American Revolution.

You can read the full text of the bill here.

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