Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a lawsuit Thursday against the Biden administration’s Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) over an allegedly “unlawful” April policy rewrite that changed the definition of discrimination to include “gender identity.”
The EEOC updated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to require both state and private employers to accommodate transgender employees by allowing men in women’s spaces, forcing the use of “preferred pronouns” and ending sex-specific dress codes. Paxton and the Heritage Foundation are challenging the rewrite, arguing that it violates the Administrative Procedure Act and does not have sufficient standing as the original wording prohibits sex-based discrimination but does not mandate special accommodations for the sexes, according to the lawsuit.
“The Biden-Harris Administration is attempting yet again to rewrite federal law through undemocratic and illegal agency action,” Paxton said in a press release. “This time, they are unlawfully weaponizing the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in an attempt to force private businesses and States to implement ‘transgender’ mandates—and Texas is suing to stop them.”
The suit also argues that the EEOC “has limited rulemaking authority” and therefore should not have been allowed to change the policy. The plaintiffs are requesting the rule to be blocked in its entirety.
“Heritage is proud to join the great state of Texas as co-plaintiff to fight another blatant abuse of federal power by the Biden/Harris Administration—the EEOC’s new harassment guidance,” Dan Mauler, general counsel for Heritage Foundation, said in a statement. “The EEOC has exceeded the limits Congress placed on their authority, violated the First Amendment, and placed women at risk with their new guidance. We are proud to be defending small businesses and American families from this illegal overreach.”
The Biden administration has faced a multitude of lawsuits since April over a similar policy rewrite that expanded Title IX to include “sexual orientation” and “gender identity.” The rule has since been blocked in several states.
The Biden administration, Heritage Foundation, and Paxton’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
(Featured image credit: Flickr/Ted Eytan)
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