The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association (WIAA) recently found that its proposed rule changes on transgender student-athletes would violate state law.
Two new rule changes proposed eliminating transgender girls from participating in girls’ sports while creating a new open division to allow trans athletes to compete. The WIAA Representative Assembly was supposed to vote on these rule changes this week, but now, they will be decided by “advisory vote only,” according to the WIAA website.
A recent article from KUOW.org detailed the WIAA’s decision. Below is an excerpt from the KUOW.org article.
Sean Bessette, director of communications for WIAA, said last week that a “legal review” has found the proposed rule changes conflict with state law — and unless the law changes, they can’t be implemented.
“The WIAA remains committed to following state law,” Bessette wrote in an email.
That review, Bessette said, was based on communications from the Washington State Attorney General’s Office, the Office for Civil Rights, and the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction.
Since 2007, WIAA’s policy has allowed trans students to participate in sports programs consistent with their gender identity. At that time, it was one of the first policies of its kind in the nation.
But the issue has become increasingly controversial — and deeply political — in recent years, especially in light of President Donald Trump’s Feb. 5 executive order titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports.” It bans transgender girls and women from participating in girls’ sports and directs the federal government to withhold funding from educational institutions that don’t comply.
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In response, WIAA said it would wait to make any changes until it received further legal guidance.
State Superintendent Chris Reykdal called the order a federal overreach that “directly contradicts” state laws banning discrimination based on gender identity. He advised districts to continue to follow existing guidance from his office, which says, “Schools are required to allow all students, including transgender and nonbinary students, the opportunity to participate on the interscholastic sports team that most closely aligns with their gender identity.”
To read the full story from KUOW.org, click here.
