BANGOR, Me. (Maine Morning Star) — The civil rights division of the U.S. Department of Education announced Friday it is launching an investigation into Maine’s Department of Education over allegations that the state is defying President Donald Trump’s executive order barring transgender athletes from competing on women’s sports teams consistent with their gender identity.
Specifically, the civil rights office argues that by allowing transgender women to compete in girls’ interscholastic athletics, Maine “has denied female athletes female-only intimate facilities, thereby violating federal antidiscrimination law.”
Notice of the investigation came hours after Maine Gov. Janet Mills and Trump had a tense exchange during an event at the White House over the state’s transgender athlete policy.
In response to the president’s threat to withdraw federal funding unless Maine adheres to the order, Mills, who was in Washington, D.C. attending the winter meeting of the National Governors Association, told him: “We’re going to follow the law, sir. We’ll see you in court.”
In heated exchange over trans rights, Gov. Mills tells President Trump: ‘See you in court’
Ahead of the exchange, Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey said any attempt by the president to cut federal funding over the issue “would be illegal and in direct violation of federal court orders.”
“Fortunately,” Frey wrote in a statement, “the rule of law still applies in this country, and I will do everything in my power to defend Maine’s laws and block efforts by the president to bully and threaten us.”
The executive order, which the president signed on Feb. 5 as part of the administration’s broader anti-trans agenda, rescinds federal funds from “educational programs” if schools fail to adhere to the ban.
The administration is asking federal agencies to interpret Title IX — a federal civil rights law barring schools that receive federal funding from practicing sex-based discrimination — in a way that complies with the order.
Frey, Mills and other officials argue the Maine Human Rights Act — which was amended in 2021 to include gender identity as a protected class against discrimination in employment, housing, education, extension of credit or access to public accommodations — protects transgender athletes.
The statement from the U.S. DOE, however, argues state laws do not override federal antidiscrimination laws.
“Maine would have you believe that it has no choice in how it treats women and girls in athletics — that is, that it must follow its state laws and allow male athletes to compete against women and girls,” said Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor.
“Let me be clear,” Trainor continued. “If Maine wants to continue to receive federal funds from the Education Department, it has to follow Title IX. If it wants to forgo federal funds and continue to trample the rights of its young female athletes, that, too, is its choice. OCR will do everything in its power to ensure taxpayers are not funding blatant civil rights violators.”
Do not be misled: this is not just about who can compete on the athletic field, this is about whether a president can force compliance with his will, without regard for the rule of law that governs our nation. I believe he cannot.
In a statement issued late Friday, Mills said that the “rule of law in our country” is at stake and that the president will likely continue to target those who speak out against his wishes.
“Maine may one of the first states to undergo an investigation by his administration, but we won’t be the last,” Mills said. “Today, the President of the United States has targeted one particular group on one particular issue which Maine law has addressed. But you must ask yourself: who and what will he target next, and what will he do? Will it be you? Will it be because of your race or your religion? Will it be because you look different or think differently? Where does it end? In America, the president is neither a king nor a dictator, as much as this one tries to act like it — and it is the rule of law that prevents him from being so.
She said that she imagines “the outcome of this politically directed investigation is all but predetermined” and added that her administration will work with Frey “to defend the interests of Maine people in the court of law.”
“But do not be misled,” Mills continued, “this is not just about who can compete on the athletic field, this is about whether a president can force compliance with his will, without regard for the rule of law that governs our nation. I believe he cannot.”
The U.S. DOE is also investigating Maine School Administrative District 51, which is based in Cumberland, in response to reports that Greely High School is “continuing to allow at least one male student to compete in girls’ categories.”
Earlier this week, Republican state Rep. Laurel Libby shared photographs and personal details about a transgender Greely High School athlete on her legislative Facebook page — a move that drew swift condemnation from members of both parties.
Similar investigations have also been launched against San Jose State University in California, the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association, the Minnesota State High School League and the California Interscholastic Federation.
