Sen. Tuberville sounds the alarm on Biden's proposed Title IX rules
Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville warned the proposed changes to Title IX would decrease funding for, and participation in, women's sports.
EXCLUSIVE: Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., sharply criticized President Biden’s proposed Title IX rules in a letter to Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, calling the interpretation "misguided" and causing "irreparable harm to women."
The Department of Education's proposed rules would expand Title IX’s protections to include sexual orientation and gender identity, drawing harsh criticism from opponents who believe it would harm women’s rights.
"This proposed rule is a monumental setback for the generations of women who have benefited from Title IX’s enactment over the last fifty years. The Department should not move forward with this proposed rule, but instead, work with Congress on legislative action meant to strengthen the protections afforded women in the original statute," Tuberville said in the letter.
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Demonstrators listen to the speaking program during an "Our Bodies, Our Sports" rally for the 50th anniversary of Title IX at Freedom Plaza on June 23, 2022 in Washington, DC. ((Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images))
While the Department of Education plans to release a separate rule related to Title IX and sports, Tuberville warned that the existing proposed changes would dramatically decrease funding for, and participation in, women's sports.
"Being 40 years in education, I've seen a lot of great things … the opportunities that have been given to young girls and women," he told Fox News Digital, highlighting the dramatic increase in women's sports participation over the 50 years Title IX has been in existence.
Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL) questions witnesses during a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee hearing on Capitol Hill on January 11, 2022, in Washington, D.C. ((Photo by Shawn Thew-Pool/Getty Images))
"I think we're going to start losing numbers, we're going to start losing interest," Tuberville, who was a high school and college athletic coach before running for office, said. "Bottom line is, we're going to take something that has been very, very successful and make it average."
"It's an attack on women, and it's an attack on young girls," Tuberville warned. "You're defeating the idea of giving girls and women the opportunity to have their own sports, to compete into their own sports."
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Title IX, which was passed into law in 1972, prohibited sex-based discrimination in schools that receive federal funding. It stated that "No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance."
Education Secretary Miguel Cardona speaks during the 2022 National and State Teachers of the Year event in the East Room of the White House in Washington, April 27, 2022. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)
"This proposed rule reverts the playing field to a time before Title IX’s enactment and will cause irreparable harm to women entering academia in the future," Tuberville’s letter said.
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The public comment period for the proposed Title IX changes ends September 12, with more than 150,000 comments both supporting and opposing the rule submitted to date.