Federal officials have launched an investigation of the California Department of Education for withholding from parents information about changes to their child’s gender identity, setting up a showdown between the state and President Trump, with billions of dollars in federal funding potentially at stake.
The investigation, announced Thursday morning by the U.S. Department of Education, essentially pits a California law signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in July — prohibiting schools from automatically notifying families about student gender-identity changes and shielding teachers from retaliation for supporting transgender student rights — against an interpretation of federal law adopted by the Trump administration.
U.S. Department of Education Secretary Linda McMahon said children are best protected when no information is withheld from parents.
“Teachers and school counselors should not be in the business of advising minors entrusted to their care on consequential decisions about their sexual identity and mental health. That responsibility and privilege lies with a parent or trusted loved one,” McMahon said in a statement. “It is not only immoral but also potentially in contradiction with federal law for California schools to hide crucial information about a student’s well-being from parents and guardians.”
The potential penalty is the loss of federal funds overseen by the Education Department. These include $2.1 billion annually in funding to offset the effects of family poverty and $1.33 billion to assist in the education of students with disabilities.
Officials with the California Department of Education could not be immediately reached for comment early Thursday morning.
Trump has issued a spate of anti-transgender orders and policies, including directives that recognize only two biological sexes, calls for defunding or even criminalizing gender-affirming medical care for youth, bans against transgender people from bathrooms and sports teams who don’t conform to their gender identified at birth. In one order, titled “Ending Radical Indoctrination in K-12 Schooling,” Trump took aim at school policies intended to support transgender, nonbinary and other gender nonconforming students.
California Atty. Gen. Rob Bonta vowed last month to defend state educators and LGBTQ+ students against Trump administration threats, saying California laws requiring inclusive school environments remain intact.
“California’s schools are and will remain a welcoming, inclusive and safe place for all, regardless of your sexual orientation, gender identity or immigration status,” Bonta said at the time. “The federal government does not dictate what we teach, and does not write our curricula. We do that here in California.”
The California law, which bans “forced outing,” was approved after a handful of school boards passed policies requiring educators to notify parents if their child changes their name or pronouns, or if students request to use facilities or participate in programs that don’t match their gender on official records.
“Parental notification” policies have been divisive across the nation. On one side, advocates for LGBTQ+ students say that students need — and have a legal right — to explore this personal issue in a safe space and deserve the opportunity to decide when and what to tell their parents. However, many parents feel they have an uncompromised right to know if their child is changing their gender identity or exploring the possibility — and schools must tell them.
McMahon, in her statement, suggested that parent notification was a necessary step to prevent harmful indoctrination by school staff.
“The agency launched today’s investigation to vigorously protect parents’ rights and ensure that students do not fall victim to a radical transgender ideology that often leads to family alienation and irreversible medical interventions,” McMahon said.
Many educators reject such characterizations — saying that teachers are not trying to recruit students to alter their identity. They insist that they are instead trying to accept students as they are and encourage tolerance.
The Trump administration probe is the latest norm-shattering step from the U.S. Department of Education, which is under his orders to shut itself down as soon as possible, even while upending the status quo both for K-12 and higher education.
Thursday’s action relies on the Trump administration’s interpretation of the federal Family Education Rights and Privacy Act, or FERPA, which protects the privacy of student education records from kindergarten through graduate school.
The U.S. Education Department has long had an office to deal with FERPA-related complaints submitted by parents and others. It is typical for such cases to revolve around personal information being improperly released or inadequately protected.
This case is different, said U.S. Education Department spokesperson Madi Biedermann.
“The more routine instances of FERPA investigations in the past have been about inappropriate disclosure of student privacy information, whereas this investigation is about a lack of disclosure of privacy information, specifically to keep parents out of the loop,” Biedermann said.
Under FERPA, a school must provide a parent with an opportunity to inspect and review their child’s education records within a reasonable period of time, but not more than 45 calendar days following a request. A parent also can request a change to these records — and have that request become part of the permanent record if the school does not agree to it.
Senior department officials said the use of FERPA enforcement authority in this way might be “unprecedented,” although they also insisted it was well within the established scope of the law.
“State laws do not override federal laws, and educational entities receiving federal funding are subject to FERPA,” a statement from the Education Department said. “Violation of FERPA can result in termination of an educational entity’s federal funding.”
Alleged FERPA violations were part of a lawsuit the Chino Valley Unified School District filed against California last July, shortly after Newsom signed the California law.
Prior to the state law, the Temecula Valley, Murrieta Valley and Orange districts in Southern California had also passed parental notification policies in recent years. In Northern California, Anderson Union High School District in Shasta County as well as Rocklin Unified and Dry Creek Joint Elementary School District in Placer County also passed similar rules. At least eight states have passed similar laws, according to the Movement Advancement Project.
Times staff writer Jaweed Kaleem contributed to this report.
