Trans athlete policy in Minnesota faces legal challenge from DOJ
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The Trump administration on Monday filed a lawsuit against Minnesota as the state continued to buck the president’s executive order to keep males out of women’s and girls’ sports.
The Justice Department (DOJ) alleged that the state’s Department of Education (MDE) and the Minnesota State High School League (MSHSL) are in violation of Title IX policies.
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Groups of protesters stand in front of the Supreme Court of the United States as the Justices hear the landmark case to decide if transgender girls should be allowed to participate in girls’ and women’s sports on Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026. Credit: Andrew Thomas / CNP (Andrew Thomas / CNP for Fox News Digital)
“The Trump Administration does not tolerate flawed state policies that ignore biological reality and unfairly undermine girls on the playing field,” Attorney General Pam Bondi said.
Minnesota has resisted making a change to its policies regarding transgender athletes. The state filed a preemptive lawsuit last year, saying the state’s human rights act supersedes President Donald Trump’s executive orders. The lawsuit said at the time that the state was already in compliance with Title IX. A ruling is pending on the federal government’s motion to dismiss the case.
The federal government said in a statement on Monday that the state violates Title IX “by requiring girls to compete against boys in athletic competitions that are designated exclusively for girls and allowing boys to invade intimate spaces designated exclusively for girls, such as multi-person locker rooms and bathrooms.”
A protester holds a sign outside the Supreme Court during arguments over state laws barring transgender girls and women from playing on school athletic teams, Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
The Justice Department said the MDE’s funding, which is $3 billion annually from the U.S. Departments of Education and Health and Human Services, is contingent on its compliance with Title IX.
The lawsuit asked federal court in Minnesota to declare that the state is in violation of Title IX.
Fox News Digital reached out to the MSHSL, the MDE and Gov. Tim Walz’s office for comment.
In October, Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison defended having transgender athletes in girls’ sports.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz seen as the state faces a lawsuit from the Trump DOJ. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
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“Letting the very small number of transgender students in Minnesota play on their school sports teams doesn’t harm anyone, but segregating them does,” Ellison said in a statement.
Fox News’ Jackson Thompson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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