Attorney General Ken Paxton led a group of states in supporting the Trump Administration’s proposed rollback of a Biden-era rule that had expanded the definition of "disability" under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. The revision would remove "gender dysphoria" from the list of federally recognized disabilities, a change Paxton praised as correcting what he saw as a diversion of resources toward "radical gender ideology," according to the Office of the Texas Attorney General.
The 2024 rule had broadened the definition of disability to include gender dysphoria, prompting criticism from Paxton and allies who argued it pressured states and misaligned federal priorities. However, experts and advocates continue to debate how this policy shift might practically affect the distribution of disability resources, as reported by the Office of the Texas Attorney General.
In 2024, Attorney General Paxton led a lawsuit against a Biden-era rule that expanded federal disability protections to include gender dysphoria, arguing it was legally and financially problematic for states. The Trump Administration’s proposed rule seeks to revert the definition of disability to its previous version, excluding gender dysphoria from federal funding. “This victory stops the Biden Administration's radical attempt to force states to comply with its woke gender ideology at the expense of Americans who rely on disability assistance,” said Paxton. The move has drawn criticism from advocacy groups concerned about protections for transgender individuals, while supporters say it aligns federal funding with existing disability categories, as stated by the Office of the Texas Attorney General.
