AG Frey and U.S. Rep. Pingree highlight importance of state-level legal challenges to counter Trump
Rep. Chellie Pingree outside the U.S. Capitol. (Rep. Chellie Pingree via Facebook)
U.S. Rep. Chellie Pingree and Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey said it's crucial for states to challenge President Donald Trump's executive orders and 'sham investigations,' emphasizing the legal avenues already used to counter several of the administration's actions.
Frey, who was speaking alongside the 1st District representative during a tele-town hall Tuesday evening, highlighted cases Maine has joined challenging Trump's executive order about birthright citizenship and attempts to freeze federal funding, and U.S. Department of Education layoffs.
He also addressed the federal investigations by the U.S. DOE and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services that found Maine to be in violation of Title IX within a few days of being initiated — and did so without following any steps of a typical investigation, including interviews.
Maine now faces several pending deadlines set by the various federal agencies to comply with the Trump administration's interpretation of Title IX, which views allowing transgender girls' access to sports, locker rooms and bathrooms as violating the federal law that bans sex-based discrimination. If the state does not challenge the findings in federal court, it will have to comply or risk losing millions in federal funding.
Pingree and Frey discussed the tense exchange between Trump and Gov. Janet Mills, which prompted the directed investigations.
'We do have a situation where we have a federal administration that appears to be trying to please the president by targeting Maine and programs in Maine,' Frey said. 'It's hard not to see it as something that's been motivated by this desire to effectuate revenge, or effectuate some sort of animus that the President has for the state of Maine.'
The remark came the same day that the acting head of the Social Security Administration Leland Dudek admitted to the New York Times that he temporarily halted several agency processes in the state that would have significantly inconvenienced Maine people because he was 'ticked at the governor of Maine for not being real cordial to the president.'
Frey did not say Tuesday whether Maine would be filing a lawsuit challenging the Title IX investigations, but said, 'obviously, we're engaged. We are the state's attorney. We are working with the affected agencies.'
Pingree also emphasized that the president does not have the power to unilaterally cut off funding to Maine, from Social Security to the temporary funding freeze ordered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to research and grants to the University of Maine System.
'However you feel about a policy, the president does not have the power, just because of his executive order, to block funding to the states,' Pingree said.
'Congress can block funding to the states … but it can't be an edict of a president because he feels a certain way. He can't do it because of policy, he can't do it because he feels he was insulted.'
SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
Trump's Energy Department proposes dismantling parts of Title IX allowing girls on boys' teams
The Trump administration has leaned heavily on Title IX in its effort to purge sports of transgender women and girls, but attorneys and experts on the 1972 civil rights law say its latest move will disproportionately affect girls who are not transgender. The Department of Energy is preparing to roll back a portion of Title IX requiring that some sports be open to 'the underrepresented sex,' a cornerstone of the federal law against sex discrimination in schools that President Trump's administration has said conflicts with his executive order to restrict trans athletes' participation. The department plans to rescind a rule that has for decades allowed girls to try out for boys' sports teams or vice versa when there is no equivalent team at their school, with some exceptions for contact sports. The move would only affect schools and education programs that receive funding from the Energy Department. The department, which traditionally does not regulate or enforce Title IX, plans to rescind a rule that has for decades allowed girls to try out for boys' sports teams or vice versa when there is no equivalent female team at their school, with some exceptions for contact sports. The Women's Sports Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded by Billie Jean King, a foundational figure in women's fight for parity in sports in the 1960s and 70s, said the Energy Department's proposal threatens to unravel years of progress and limit athletic opportunities for girls. 'To uphold the spirit and promise of Title IX, we urge for it to be withdrawn,' the group said in an emailed statement to The Hill. In justifying its proposal, announced last month, the Energy Department said athletics rules allowing girls to compete on boys' teams 'ignore differences between the sexes which are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality,' language from Trump's day one executive order proclaiming the federal government recognizes only two sexes, male and female. Rescinding the regulation, the department said, aligns with another Trump order declaring the U.S. opposes 'male competitive participation in women's sports' as a matter of 'safety, fairness, dignity and truth.' The Education Department, which has historically enforced Title IX, has launched more than two dozen investigations this year into states, school districts and sports associations that allow trans girls to compete against and alongside girls who are not transgender. In announcing that the department would recognize June, which is traditionally Pride Month, as 'Title IX Month,' Education Secretary Linda McMahon said the administration 'will fight on every front to protect women's and girls' sports.' The changes the Department of Energy proposed would do little to further that objective, said James Nussbaum, an attorney focused on education and sports law at Church, Church, Hittle, and Antrim in Indiana. 'I'm scratching my head for the motivation behind [rescinding the rule] because they mention the 'Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports' executive order, but it won't really apply in the vast majority of those cases because [the rule] only allows a person to participate in a sport of the other sex on two conditions,' Nussbaum said. 'One, the school doesn't already offer that sport for their sex, and two, they're the 'underrepresented sex' historically, and that's just not male sports at the vast majority of schools.' While no high schools in the U.S. offer an all-girls tackle football team, for example, more than 4,000 girls played 11-person tackle football on boys' teams for the 2023-2024 school year, according to the National Federation of State High Schools Association. An Energy Department spokesperson did not return a request for comment. Government agencies looking to change federal regulations must typically do so through a lengthy administrative process beginning with advance notice of proposed rulemaking and a public comment period generally lasting 30-60 days. The Energy Department's Title IX proposal, submitted as a 'direct final rule,' (DFR) would skirt traditional regulatory channels, allowing it to take effect automatically on July 15 absent 'significant adverse comments,' the deadline for which to submit is Monday. DFRs are exempt from parts of the standard rulemaking process, with which federal agencies must comply under the Administrative Procedures Act. Agencies may use DFRs when addressing issues that are technical, uncontroversial or unlikely to elicit a significant adverse response. 'None of that applies in this situation,' said Shiwali Patel, senior director of safe and inclusive schools at the National Women's Law Center. 'These are regulations that are long-standing, that have existed for decades.' That the athletics proposal originated in the Department of Energy rather than the Department of Education, whose Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is typically responsible for regulating and enforcing Title IX, is unusual, legal experts said. Other agencies providing federal financial assistance to educational institutions also bear some enforcement responsibility, and under the Trump administration, the Health and Human Services and Justice departments have moved to carry out the law. In April, the departments of Justice and Education launched a joint special investigations task force to streamline the government's handling of Title IX inquiries, citing ballooning caseloads. 'Generally, things have followed kind of a principle of logic — you stick to the things you're experts in, you regulate the things that you are tasked with regulating,' said Maha Ibrahim, program managing attorney for Equal Rights Advocates, a nonprofit gender justice and women's rights organization. In the past, she said, federal agencies such as the Energy Department might propose updating their Title IX regulations to mirror those issued by the Education Department to ensure cross-agency consistency, but they don't usually 'step out of their lane and do the initial regulatory change.' 'This is unusual in an alarming way,' she said. The Department of Energy, with a larger budget and greater resources to conduct investigations, was perhaps the better choice to introduce the proposal over the Education Department, which Trump has sought to close, Ibrahim said. In March, the agency shuttered seven of its 12 civil rights enforcement offices and fired hundreds of workers, K-12 Dive reported. Through its Renew America's Schools Program, the Energy Department has invested $372.5 million in K-12 public school districts nationwide. The department also provides over $3.5 billion annually through grant programs to more than 300 colleges and universities. While the Energy Department's proposal would only directly affect schools that receive its funding, the plan would create inconsistencies among federal agencies with Title IX regulations, confusing schools and potentially hampering students' and educators' ability to file claims, said Patel, of the National Women's Law Center. The organization, which advocates for women's and LGBTQ rights, plans to submit a comment opposing the rule change, she said. More than 1,800 comments have already been submitted, but their content is not publicly available. The Title IX proposal is part of a larger Department of Energy push to quickly eliminate or reduce dozens of regulations that it said in May 'are driving up costs and lowering quality of life for the American people.' 'While it would normally take years for the Department of Energy to remove just a handful of regulations, the Trump Administration assembled a team working around the clock to reduce costs and deliver results for the American people in just over 110 days,' Energy Secretary Chris Wright said last month. The department's deregulatory efforts include terminating or modifying 47 rules that would, once finalized, free up an estimated $11 billion and cut more than 125,000 words from the Code of Federal Regulations, the department said. Rules on the chopping block include diversity, equity, and inclusion requirements for federal grant recipients, which the Energy Department has called 'unscientific.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
2 days ago
- The Hill
Trump's Energy Department proposes dismantling parts of Title IX allowing girls on boys' teams
The Trump administration has leaned heavily on Title IX in its effort to purge sports of transgender women and girls, but attorneys and experts on the 1972 civil rights law say its latest move will disproportionately affect girls who are not transgender. The Department of Energy is preparing to roll back a portion of Title IX requiring that some sports be open to 'the underrepresented sex,' a cornerstone of the federal law against sex discrimination in schools that President Trump's administration has said conflicts with his executive order to restrict trans athletes' participation. The department plans to rescind a rule that has for decades allowed girls to try out for boys' sports teams or vice versa when there is no equivalent team at their school, with some exceptions for contact sports. The move would only affect schools and education programs that receive funding from the Energy Department. The department, which traditionally does not regulate or enforce Title IX, plans to rescind a rule that has for decades allowed girls to try out for boys' sports teams or vice versa when there is no equivalent female team at their school, with some exceptions for contact sports. The Women's Sports Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded by Billie Jean King, a foundational figure in women's fight for parity in sports in the 1960s and 70s, said the Energy Department's proposal threatens to unravel years of progress and limit athletic opportunities for girls. 'To uphold the spirit and promise of Title IX, we urge for it to be withdrawn,' the group said in an emailed statement to The Hill. In justifying its proposal, announced last month, the Energy Department said athletics rules allowing girls to compete on boys' teams 'ignore differences between the sexes which are grounded in fundamental and incontrovertible reality,' language from Trump's day one executive order proclaiming the federal government recognizes only two sexes, male and female. Rescinding the regulation, the department said, aligns with another Trump order declaring the U.S. opposes 'male competitive participation in women's sports' as a matter of 'safety, fairness, dignity and truth.' The Education Department, which has historically enforced Title IX, has launched more than two dozen investigations this year into states, school districts and sports associations that allow trans girls to compete against and alongside girls who are not transgender. In announcing that the department would recognize June, which is traditionally Pride Month, as 'Title IX Month,' Education Secretary Linda McMahon said the administration 'will fight on every front to protect women's and girls' sports.' The changes the Department of Energy proposed would do little to further that objective, said James Nussbaum, an attorney focused on education and sports law at Church, Church, Hittle, and Antrim in Indiana. 'I'm scratching my head for the motivation behind [rescinding the rule] because they mention the 'Keeping Men Out of Women's Sports' executive order, but it won't really apply in the vast majority of those cases because [the rule] only allows a person to participate in a sport of the other sex on two conditions,' Nussbaum said. 'One, the school doesn't already offer that sport for their sex, and two, they're the 'underrepresented sex' historically, and that's just not male sports at the vast majority of schools.' While no high schools in the U.S. offer an all-girls tackle football team, for example, more than 4,000 girls played 11-person tackle football on boys' teams for the 2023-2024 school year, according to the National Federation of State High Schools Association. An Energy Department spokesperson did not return a request for comment. Government agencies looking to change federal regulations must typically do so through a lengthy administrative process beginning with advance notice of proposed rulemaking and a public comment period generally lasting 30-60 days. The Energy Department's Title IX proposal, submitted as a 'direct final rule,' (DFR) would skirt traditional regulatory channels, allowing it to take effect automatically on July 15 absent 'significant adverse comments,' the deadline for which to submit is Monday. DFRs are exempt from parts of the standard rulemaking process, with which federal agencies must comply under the Administrative Procedures Act. Agencies may use DFRs when addressing issues that are technical, uncontroversial or unlikely to elicit a significant adverse response. 'None of that applies in this situation,' said Shiwali Patel, senior director of safe and inclusive schools at the National Women's Law Center. 'These are regulations that are long-standing, that have existed for decades.' That the athletics proposal originated in the Department of Energy rather than the Department of Education, whose Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is typically responsible for regulating and enforcing Title IX, is unusual, legal experts said. Other agencies providing federal financial assistance to educational institutions also bear some enforcement responsibility, and under the Trump administration, the Health and Human Services and Justice departments have moved to carry out the law. In April, the departments of Justice and Education launched a joint special investigations task force to streamline the government's handling of Title IX inquiries, citing ballooning caseloads. 'Generally, things have followed kind of a principle of logic — you stick to the things you're experts in, you regulate the things that you are tasked with regulating,' said Maha Ibrahim, program managing attorney for Equal Rights Advocates, a nonprofit gender justice and women's rights organization. In the past, she said, federal agencies such as the Energy Department might propose updating their Title IX regulations to mirror those issued by the Education Department to ensure cross-agency consistency, but they don't usually 'step out of their lane and do the initial regulatory change.' 'This is unusual in an alarming way,' she said. The Department of Energy, with a larger budget and greater resources to conduct investigations, was perhaps the better choice to introduce the proposal over the Education Department, which Trump has sought to close, Ibrahim said. In March, the agency shuttered seven of its 12 civil rights enforcement offices and fired hundreds of workers, K-12 Dive reported. Through its Renew America's Schools Program, the Energy Department has invested $372.5 million in K-12 public school districts nationwide. The department also provides over $3.5 billion annually through grant programs to more than 300 colleges and universities. While the Energy Department's proposal would only directly affect schools that receive its funding, the plan would create inconsistencies among federal agencies with Title IX regulations, confusing schools and potentially hampering students' and educators' ability to file claims, said Patel, of the National Women's Law Center. The organization, which advocates for women's and LGBTQ rights, plans to submit a comment opposing the rule change, she said. More than 1,800 comments have already been submitted, but their content is not publicly available. The Title IX proposal is part of a larger Department of Energy push to quickly eliminate or reduce dozens of regulations that it said in May 'are driving up costs and lowering quality of life for the American people.' 'While it would normally take years for the Department of Energy to remove just a handful of regulations, the Trump Administration assembled a team working around the clock to reduce costs and deliver results for the American people in just over 110 days,' Energy Secretary Chris Wright said last month. The department's deregulatory efforts include terminating or modifying 47 rules that would, once finalized, free up an estimated $11 billion and cut more than 125,000 words from the Code of Federal Regulations, the department said. Rules on the chopping block include diversity, equity, and inclusion requirements for federal grant recipients, which the Energy Department has called 'unscientific.'
2 days ago
Why thousands of NCAA athletes might wait over a year for share of $2.8 billion settlement
The attorney who negotiated the $2.8 billion legal settlement for the NCAA said Friday that thousands of former athletes due to receive damages could have to wait months or maybe more than a year to get paid while appeals play out. Rakesh Kilaru, who served as the NCAA's lead counsel for the House settlement that was approved last week, told The Associated Press an appeal on Title IX grounds filed this week will hold up payments due to around 390,000 athletes who signed on to the class-action settlement. He said he has seen appeals take up to 18 months in the California-based federal court where this case is playing out, though that isn't necessarily what he expects. 'I will say that we, and I'm sure the plaintiffs, are going to push,' Kilaru said. A schedule filed this week calls for briefs related to the appeal to be filed by Oct. 3. Kilaru doesn't expect anyone on the defendant or plaintiff side to file for extensions in the case 'because every day the appeal goes on is a day damages don't go to the student-athletes.' He said while the appeal is ongoing, the NCAA will pay the money into a fund that will be ready to go when needed. The other critical parts of the settlement -- the part that allows each school to share up to $20.5 million in revenue with current players and set up an enforcement arm to regulate it -- are in effect regardless of appeals. 'I think everyone thought it was important and good for this new structure to start working because it does have a lot of benefits for students,' Kilaru said. 'But it's very common for damages to be delayed in this way for the simple reason that you don't want to make payments to people that you can't recover' if the appeal is successful. A group of eight female athletes filed the appeal. Their attorney, Ashlyn Hare, said they supported settlement of the case 'but not an inaccurate one that violates federal law.' "The calculation of past damages is based on an error that ignores Title IX and deprives female athletes of $1.1 billion,' Hare said. Kilaru agreed with plaintiff attorneys who have argued that Title IX violations are outside the scope of the lawsuit. Other objections to the settlement came from athletes who said they were damaged by roster limits set by the terms. One attorney representing a group of those objectors, Steven Molo, said they were reviewing Wilken's decision and exploring options.
