The Trump administration stands accused of holding crucial sexual health education funding hostage, unless states conform to a policy that excludes affirmative language regarding young people's gender identity. Leading the resistance, Washington Attorney General Nick Brown, along with a coalition of 16 states and the District of Columbia, is suing the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). As reported by the Attorney General's office, this move comes in response to threats from the federal government to withdraw funding from teen reproductive and sexual health education programs should they continue to employ inclusive language.
In particular, HHS has taken issue with the language in program materials that is meant to be inclusive of all young people, regardless of their sex or gender identity. This includes states like Washington, which receives over $2.6 million annually via the Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP), and utilizes these funds to educate teenagers on pregnancy prevention and STD awareness. The Washington state law requires materials have inclusive language, a requirement deemed as pushing a "radical gender ideology" by the Trump administration. Brown pointed to the illegality of such moves, stating, "The federal government's far-reaching efforts to erase people who don't fit one of two gender labels is illegal and wrong—and would deny services to millions more in the process," in a statement obtained by the Attorney General's office.
The complaint filed in the federal District Court of Oregon seeks to halt HHS actions before they can terminate funding in Washington. The coalition alleges that the HHS's actions are not only capricious but also run contrary to the fundamental separation of powers laid out in the U.S. Constitution. By implying that gender is absolute and binary, and insisting on the erasure of any references to transgender status or gender identity, the Trump administration is said to contradict the intentions of Congress when it created the grant programs.
Washington, along with fellow lead states Oregon and Minnesota, argue that the Trump administration's imposition of these new conditions on health education is not just arbitrary, but could have far-reaching, harmful impacts on youth. By requiring states to use PREP program content that is medically unsupported, Congress's laws are being violated. Beyond the lead states, others in the coalition include Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin, all joining in a cause that transcends individual state policies and touches the very heart of how young people are to be educated on matters of personal health and well-being.
