Trump’s Department of Health and Human Services’ Office for Civil Rights (OCR) has concluded that the Maine Department of Education, the Maine Principals’ Association, and Greely High School violated Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 Act. The law prohibits sex-based discrimination in educational programs and activities that receive federal funding.
On February 21, 2025, HHS’ OCR launched a compliance review into Maine after a transgender teen athlete, a biological boy who identifies as a girl, won a Maine Class B championship girls’ track and field event at Greely High School.
“The compliance review examined whether the State of Maine engaged in discrimination on the basis of sex in violation of Federal law by allowing males to compete in sports reserved for girls,” the office stated. “OCR’s determination explains the fact-finding and analysis that led to its conclusion that each of the three entities are obligated to comply with Title IX and violated Title IX.”
Maine officials had vowed to ignore Trump’s executive order that aims to keep biological males out of women’s sports. The order aims to protect women from competing against men or being forced to expose themselves or share private facilities such as bathrooms, dressing rooms, or locker rooms “as a matter of safety, fairness, dignity, and truth.”
OCR said the Maine Department of Education had the sole responsibility of ensuring that its federally funded extracurricular programs complied with Trump’s order.
“The Maine Department of Education may not shirk its obligations under Federal law by ceding control of its extracurricular activities, programs, and services to the Maine Principals’ Association,” said Anthony Archeval, Acting Director of the Office for Civil Rights at HHS. “We hope the Maine Department of Education, the Maine Principals’ Association, and Greely High School will work with us to come to an agreement that restores fairness in women’s sports.”
After detemining that the three entities violated federal policy, the Office of Civil Rights issued them letters, requesting voluntarily compliance within ten days, or risk being referral to the U.S. Department of Justice for appropriate action.
“OCR’s determination letter to the three entities offers them an opportunity to voluntarily commit within 10 days to resolve the matter through a signed agreement or risk referral to the U.S. Department of Justice for appropriate action.”
Coincidentally, the Department of Education had launched an independent investigation into Maine after the boy won the girls’ pole vault competition.
While the respondents have yet to publicly respond to the OCR’s letters, including clarifying if they intend to comply, Democrats in Maine remain defiant toward Trump’s policy. On February 21, President Trump engaged in a heated public exchange with Democratic Governor Janet Mills over the state’s refusal to comply with E.O. 1420. The president threatened to withhold federal funding for the state, a decision that the Democrat vowed to challenge in court.
“Are you not going to comply with it?” he asked.
“I’m complying with state and federal laws,” Gov. Mills replied.
Trump reminded her that his orders were the federal law, that he performed very well in the liberal state, and that her time in elected politics was running out.
“Your population doesn’t want men playing in women’s sports,” Trump accurately noted, which aligns with a February 2025 New York Times/Ipsos poll that found 80% of Americans oppose transgender athletes in women’s sports.
Subsequently, Trump directed the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to pause federal funding for the University of Maine System (UMS) over the state’s unwillingness to prevent biological men who identify as women from competing in women’s sports. UMS receives about $63 million in USDA grants.
However, UMS says it has complied with all federal and state laws and implemented the NCAA’s updated guidelines on fair competition. Nonetheless, USDA restored UMS funding after RINO Republican Senator Susan Collins consulted with the Trump administration.
