Federal health and education officials have escalated a high-stakes Title IX dispute with Minnesota to the Justice Department, raising the possibility of lawsuits and the loss of federal education funding over the state’s policies on girls’ sports.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Education announced that they have formally referred Minnesota’s Department of Education and the Minnesota State High School League to the U.S. Department of Justice for enforcement action, alleging continued violations of Title IX by allowing males to compete in girls’ sports and access female-only facilities.
In a joint press release, the leadership of the two agencies said Minnesota refused to comply with a proposed resolution agreement after federal investigators concluded in September 2025 that state education officials and the high school sports league violated the federal civil rights law.
Title IX prohibits sex discrimination in education programs that receive federal financial assistance.
“Minnesota is violating Title IX, and we will not look the other way,” Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., said. “When states allow males to compete in girls’ sports, they deny young women and girls the protections the law guarantees. After Minnesota refused to comply, we referred this case to the Department of Justice for enforcement.”
Education Secretary Linda McMahon said the state had repeatedly declined opportunities to resolve the findings voluntarily. “Despite repeated opportunities to comply with Title IX, Minnesota has chosen defiance – continuing to jeopardize the safety of women and girls, deny them fair competition, and erode their right to equal access in educational programs and activities,” she said. “As Minnesota reels from a massive fraud scandal exposing Governor Tim Walz’s dereliction of duty, today’s referral to DOJ underscores the state’s ongoing failure to safeguard its citizens and uphold the rule of law. The Trump Administration will not stop until accountability is delivered for Minnesota’s students.”
The referral marks a significant escalation.
Federal officials said Justice Department action could ultimately result in the termination of federal funding from HHS and the Education Department if Minnesota is found to be out of compliance and fails to take corrective action.
According to the agency’s press release, the dispute stems from investigations launched in June 2025 after the participation of a male athlete in a Minnesota State High School League girls’ fastpitch softball championship. Federal officials later alleged that the boy had competed on the Champlin Park High School girls’ varsity softball team since 2023 and led the team to multiple winning seasons against all-girls teams.
In a September 30, 2025, notice of violation, federal civil rights offices said Minnesota education officials and the high school league allowed male athletes to compete in multiple girls’ sports over several years, including alpine skiing, Nordic skiing, lacrosse, track and field, volleyball, and softball. They also alleged that state guidance documents incorrectly described Title IX obligations by asserting that students should be allowed to participate in sports and use facilities consistent with gender identity.
As part of the proposed resolution agreement reportedly rejected by Minnesota, federal officials demanded that the state rescind guidance permitting males in girls’ sports, adopt biology-based definitions of sex, restore records and titles to female athletes, and certify annual compliance with Title IX.
Gov. Tim Walz did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the referral from The Dallas Express.
State Attorney General Keith Ellison has previously said Minnesota law requires schools to allow students to participate in sports consistent with their gender identity and has challenged the Trump administration’s policies in court, per Politico.
Representative Brad Finstad, a Republican whose district includes southern Minnesota, praised the original federal investigation last year. “Girls deserve a fair playing field in competitive sports, which the State of Minnesota has denied them by allowing biological males to take roster positions, scholarships, and even championships away from them,” he said in a June 26, 2025, statement.
The Justice Department has not yet said what specific enforcement steps it may take following the new referral.
