California Risks Federal Actions Over Transgender Athletes in Women’s Sports

The U.S. Education Department, which ruled that California is in violation of Title IX, outlined a series of changes the state must adopt within 10 days.

Then-nominee for the post of secretary of education, Linda McMahon, testifies during her Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee confirmation hearing in the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington, on Feb. 13, 2025. Win McNamee/Getty Images

The U.S. Department of Education has found California in violation of federal anti-discrimination laws for allowing male athletes to compete in women’s sports.

The finding on June 25 follows investigations launched earlier in 2025 into both the California Interscholastic Federation (CIF), which is the state’s governing body for high school sports, and the California Department of Education.

The inquiries, opened in February and April, focused on whether California’s School Success and Opportunity Act conflicts with Title IX, the federal law prohibiting sex-based discrimination in education programs that receive federal dollars.

The California law, in effect since 2014, allows students to participate in sports programs and use sex-segregated bathrooms and locker rooms based on their preferred gender identity rather than their biological sex.

CIF has stated that it intends to continue following state law, even as President Donald Trump warned that doing so could jeopardize its federal funding.

As a result of the June 25 noncompliance finding, the U.S. Department of Education outlined a series of required actions that state authorities must implement within 10 days.

Those include directing schools to adopt biology-based definitions of “male” and “female”; restoring titles, awards, and records to female athletes who were displaced by male competitors in girls’ events; and sending personalized letters of apology to each affected female athlete on behalf of California for the discrimination they had suffered.

Failure to comply, the department warned, could be met with enforcement actions, including referral to the Department of Justice for legal proceedings.

The state agencies did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The announcement comes just weeks after CIF crowned two champions in girls’ track and field events at the state meet, where an athlete who identifies as transgender took first place in both the high jump and triple jump. The male student, who also finished second in the long jump, shared the podium with female competitors under a new rule that allows all athletes to receive medals based on their placement if no transgender-identifying athlete had competed.

“The CIF values all of our student-athletes and we will continue to uphold our mission of providing students with the opportunity to belong, connect, and compete while complying with California law and Education Code,” the federation said in a statement ahead of the championship matches.

In March, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, described the current policy as “deeply unfair” during an episode of his own podcast. Speaking with conservative commentator Charlie Kirk, Newsom agreed with Kirk’s argument that Democrats had become out of touch with many Americans by insisting that transgender-identifying athletes should compete based on gender identity.

“I revere sports, and so the issue of fairness is completely legit,” Newsom told Kirk.

He has not yet proposed any changes to the law since the show aired and has drawn criticism from members of the Democratic Party, including pro-LGBT state lawmakers.

Citing the governor’s remarks, U.S. Education Secretary Linda McMahon condemned the state’s continued enforcement of the policy.

“Although Governor Gavin Newsom admitted months ago it was ‘deeply unfair’ to allow men to compete in women’s sports, both the California Department of Education and the California Interscholastic Federation continued as recently as a few weeks ago to allow men to steal female athletes’ well-deserved accolades and to subject them to the indignity of unfair and unsafe competitions,” McMahon said in a statement.

“The Trump Administration will relentlessly enforce Title IX protections for women and girls, and our findings today make clear that California has failed to adhere to its obligations under federal law.

“The state must swiftly come into compliance with Title IX or face the consequences that follow.”