21 Republican senators join Tuberville in warning the change to Title IX “destroys the protections” created for female athletes 51 years ago
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) today led a group of 21 Republican senators in issuing a clear rebuke of U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona’s proposed changes to Title IX and condemning the Biden administration’s plan to force schools to allow biological males to compete against females.
“Our comment sent to Secretary Cardona echoes what most Americans already know to be true: forcing schools to allow biological males to compete against young women is unfair, unsafe, and wrong,” said Senator Tuberville.“Last year, a record number of parents, coaches, and athletes responded to a proposed change to Title IX because they care about the future of female athletes. Sadly, the Biden administration ignored their concerns and plowed ahead with a policy that’s deeply out-of-touch with the majority of the country. I dedicated my career to being a coach and mentor because I care about our country’s young people. I will not give up the fight to save women’s sports.”
Senator Tuberville and his colleagues submitted a comment to Secretary Cardona in response to his department’s proposed rule change, “Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Sex in Education Programs or Activities Receiving Federal Financial Assistance: Sex-Related Eligibility Criteria for Male and Female Athletic Teams.”
“Congress made clear that its intention in passing Title IX was to prohibit discrimination against women participating fully in all aspects of athletic and academic opportunity at institutions that received federal financial assistance,” wrote the senators. “This proposed rule uses weakly-associated case law and polarizing social concepts to broaden the definition of women and girls to include individuals who identify as women, and in so doing, the intent of the law is destroyed and women are marginalized yet again.”
The full comment submitted by the senators can be found here.
In addition to Senator Tuberville, the comment submitted to Secretary Cardona was signed by U.S. Senators Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Kevin Cramer (R-ND), Mike Braun (R-IN), Roger Marshall, M.D. (R-KS), Rick Scott (R-FL), Joni Ernst (R-IA), Mike Lee (R-UT), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-MS), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Jim Risch (R-ID), Steve Daines (R-MT), Roger Wicker (R-MS), John Barrasso (R-WY), Cynthia Lummis (R-WY), Tedd Budd (R-NC), Ron Johnson (R-WI), Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-LA), Katie Britt (R-AL), and Dan Sullivan (R-AK).
The public comment comes just weeks after Senator Tuberville called upon the Senate to pass his bill to preserve Title IX protections for female athletes and ensure fair, safe competition in women’s sports across the country. After reintroducing the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act of 2023 in March, Senator Tuberville moved for the Senate to pass the bill by unanimous consent to counteract the Biden administration’s rule.
Democrats in the Senate blocked the swift passage of the legislation, even though a clear majority of Americans support its provisions.
Specifically, the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act:
- Ensures Title IX provisions treat gender as “recognized based solely on a person’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.”
- Bans recipients of federal funding from operating, sponsoring, or facilitating athletic programs that permit a male to participate in a women’s sporting event.
BACKGROUND
Last year, on the 50th anniversary of Title IX’s enactment, the U.S. Department of Education issued a proposed rule to allow biological males to compete in women’s sports. Senator Tuberville offered a public comment to the proposed rule, citing his concern about the negative implications it would cause for female athletes. The department proceeded forward with its decision to finalize the rule, which is expected to take effect during the 2023-2024 school year.
Senator Tuberville has been a vocal advocate of preserving Title IX and urged ED officials to keep the protections in place.
More information about Senator Tuberville’s longstanding efforts to promote and protect Title IX can be found below.
- FOX NEWS: Senate Dem blocks bill to ‘save women’s sports’ after GOP’s Tuberville calls for quick passage
- NEWSNATION: Tuberville bill would bar ‘biological male’ athletes from girls sports
- NATIONAL REVIEW: Female Athletes Are Losing to the Radical Left
- WASHINGTON EXAMINER: Tuberville bill would defund women’s sports programs that allow biological men
- FOX & FRIENDS: Senator Tuberville joins Fox and Friends to discuss the 50th Anniversary of Inflation and Title IX
- FOX & FRIENDS: Tuberville Calls for Fairness in Women’s Sports
- DAILY WIRE: Ahead of 50th Anniversary of Title IX, Senator Tuberville Warns Biden Admin is Hacking Away at Women’s Progress
- DAILY WIRE: Senator Tuberville: Biden Title IX Modifications Will Destroy ‘Opportunities For Generations Of Women And Girls’
- WASHINGTON EXAMINER: Biden executive order will ruin women’s sports and erode Title IX
- DAILY CALLER: Dr. Ben Carson, Sen. Tuberville Break Down Why They Think Trans Athletes Shouldn’t Compete In Women’s Sports
- AL.COM: U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville says Biden administration pushing women to the sidelines
- WATCH: Tuberville on Biden Administration’s Upcoming Title IX Proposed Rule: ‘It would take a wrecking ball to the five decades of Title IX success and tilt what was a level playing field to the far left’
- WATCH: Tuberville Presses Under Secretary of Education Nominee on Title IX, Free Speech on Campus
- WATCH: Tuberville: The Real March Madness
- Tuberville Warns Secretary Cardona Against Weakening Title IX Protections
- Tuberville Emphasizes Importance of Title IX Protections
- Tuberville Offers Amendment Protecting Women’s Title IX Rights
Senator Tommy Tuberville represents Alabama in the United States Senate and is a member of the Senate Armed Services, Agriculture, Veterans’ Affairs, and HELP Committees.
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