The U.S. Department of Education has launched an investigation into the New Richmond School District in western Wisconsin for allegedly “allowing biological men to use female restrooms.”
On Thursday, the U.S. The Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights announced a “directed investigation” to determine whether the New Richmond School District’s bathroom policy violates federal Title IX protections for female students and athletes.
The statement cites a contentious January school board meeting where parents and the activist group Moms for Liberty demanded the district stop allowing biological males into girls’ bathrooms. The department said Title IX protections do not allow bathroom access based on a student’s gender identity.
“The Trump Administration will always stand up for students and enforce Title IX to ensure that women and girls are safe when they are at school,” said Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Kimberly Richey. “Young women should never be forced to share intimate spaces with boys and men because school leaders care more about radical gender ideology than protecting girls’ safety, dignity, and privacy.”
The New Richmond School District superintendent and members of the school board did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the federal investigation.
Title IX has been the law of the land since 1972, but it’s changed several times under different presidential administrations. In 2020, during President Donald Trump’s first term, the law was changed to mandate that students use bathroom, locker and shower facilities based on their biological sex, not their gender identity. In 2024, former President Joe Biden’s administration updated Title IX to allow transgender students to use facilities that align with their gender identity. Biden’s changes were struck down last year, and the Trump administration announced it would enforce the 2020 restrictions.
According to the Hudson Star-Observer, the New Richmond School Board reviewed regulations related to separate toilet, locker and shower facilities on the basis of sex. The district’s attorney said more recent court rulings have reaffirmed students’ rights to use bathrooms, locker rooms and showers corresponding with their gender identity, and the district could face lawsuits if policies counter those rulings.
Title IX investigation praised by Republican candidates running for governor and Congress
The battle over the New Richmond district’s gender policy has become a national issue for some conservatives. It’s also become a rallying cry for U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany, R-Minocqua, and two Republican candidates running to fill his seat as he runs for Wisconsin governor.
On Thursday, Tiffany shared the Department of Education’s statement in a social media post and said “It’s sick that (Gov. Tony Evers) refuses to stand up for female students.”
“As governor, I will protect girls’ spaces and put an end to this nonsense,” said Tiffany.
Republican Michael Alfonso, who is running for Tiffany’s seat, posted about the Trump administration’s investigation, accusing the school district of “criminally allowing biological males to use female restrooms!”