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Federal judge strikes down ‘gender secrecy’ policies in California public schools
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A federal judge on Monday struck down California school policies that prevent schools from revealing a student’s gender identity to their parents.
The class-action suit, filed by California teachers and parents, sought to overturn policies that barred K-12 educators from informing parents when students used names or pronouns different from those assigned at birth.
San Diego U.S. District Judge Roger Benitez, a George W. Bush appointee, ruled in favor of two Escondido Union School District teachers, Elizabeth Mirabelli and Lori Ann West, who argued that their school district’s policies “flatly prohibit teachers from respecting parents’ wishes.”
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In the suit, filed in April 2023, the middle school teachers named several district officials and claimed that the district’s policies violated their constitutional and religious rights.
The California state officials named in the suit included State Superintendent Tony Thurmond, Attorney General Rob Bonta and the State Board of Education.
The judgment handed down by Benitez applies to all California public schools, not just the district the suit was filed in. The judge wrote in his order granting summary judgment that the California public school system placed a “communication barrier between parents and teachers.”
“Parents and guardians have a federal constitutional right to be informed if their public school student child expresses gender incongruence,” Benitez wrote. “Teachers and school staff have a federal constitutional right to accurately inform the parent or guardian of their student when the student expresses gender incongruence.”
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A transgender rights supporter takes part in a rally outside the U.S. Supreme Court as the justices hear arguments in a case on transgender health rights on Dec. 4, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)
The U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Mahmoud v. Taylor this summer was referenced by Benitez in his ruling. The Supreme Court’s decision granted public school parents the right to opt out of materials and discussions that are at odds with their religious beliefs.
As reported by EdSource, while Benitez’s ruling referenced guidance that the California Department of Education shared with school districts, he stated that this case is not focused on California Assembly Bill 1955, which prohibited forcing teachers from disclosing the gender identity of their students.
In response to more than a dozen California school boards adopting parental notification policies that required school staff to inform parents if a student asked to be referred to by a name or gender different from that assigned at birth, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the Support Academic Futures and Educators for Today’s Youth — known as the SAFETY Act — in 2024.
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The Chicago-based conservative Catholic law firm that took the case, the Thomas More Society, issued a statement about the ruling on Monday and hailed the decision as a “landmark class-action ruling.”
“Today’s incredible victory finally, and permanently, ends California’s dangerous and unconstitutional regime of gender secrecy policies in schools,” said Paul Jonna of the Thomas More Society.
Following Benitez’s ruling, the California Legislative LGBTQ caucus issued a statement arguing that the judge’s decision “deliberately injects confusion into the public understanding” of the state’s SAFETY Act and “signals an alarming willingness to undermine long-standing constitutional rights to privacy and nondiscrimination protections across California law.”
The ACLU of Southern California criticized the ruling, writing, “This case is part of a nationwide, coordinated attack on trans people and all those who stand up for trans youth. California must remain steadfast in its commitment to supporting trans youth and we look forward to seeing state leaders stand up for trans and gender nonconforming students by promptly pursuing an appeal.”
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Attorney General Bonta also responded to Benitez’s ruling, filing a brief on Monday to stay the court’s injunction. EdSource reported that a spokesperson for Bonta said the district court misapplied the law and that the decision would eventually be reversed on appeal.
“We are committed to securing school environments that allow transgender students to safely participate as their authentic selves while recognizing the important role that parents play in students’ lives,” Bonta’s office said in a statement.
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A recent Review-Journal letter to the editor mischaracterized Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto’s Southern Nevada Economic Development and Conservation Act, also known as the Clark County Lands bill. As the former executive director of the Nevada Conservation League, I wholeheartedly support this legislation, so I wanted to set the record straight.
Sen. Cortez Masto has been working on this bill for years in partnership with state and local governments, conservation groups like the NCL and local area tribes. It’s true that the Clark County lands bill would open 25,000 acres to help Las Vegas grow responsibly, while setting aside 2 million acres for conservation. It would also help create more affordable housing throughout the valley while ensuring our treasured public spaces can be preserved for generations to come.
What is not correct is that the money from these land sales would go to the federal government’s coffers. In fact, the opposite is true.
The 1998 Southern Nevada Public Lands Management Act is a landmark bill that identified specific public land for future sale and created a special account ensuring all land sale revenues would come back to Nevada. In accordance with that law 5 percent of revenue from land transfers goes to the state of Nevada for general education purposes, 10 percent goes to the Southern Nevada Water Authority for needed water infrastructure and 85 percent supports conservation and environmental mitigation projects in Southern Nevada. This legislation has provided billions to Clark County and will continue to benefit generations of Southern Nevadans. Sen. Cortez Masto’s lands bill builds upon the act’s success.
So here’s the good news: All of the money generated from land made available for sale under Sen. Cortez Masto’s bill would be sent to the special account created by the 1998 law. Rather than going to an unaccountable federal government, the proceeds would continue to help kids in Vegas get a better education, bolster outdoor recreation and modernize Southern Nevada’s infrastructure.
I know how important it is that money generated from the sale of public land in Nevada stay in the hands of Nevadans, and so does the senator. That’s why she opposed a Republican effort last year to sell off 200,000 acres of land in Clark County and other areas of the country that would have sent those dollars directly to Washington.
Public land management in Nevada should benefit Nevadans. We should protect sacred cultural sites and beloved recreation spaces, responsibly transfer land for affordable housing when needed and ensure our state has the resources it needs to grow sustainably. I will continue working with Sen. Cortez Masto to advocate for legislation, such as the Clark County lands bill, that puts the needs of Nevadans first.
Paul Selberg writes from Las Vegas.
Josh’s Saturday Night Forecast
NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – Calmer weather has moved back into the state this afternoon. Temperatures are slightly warmer across northwestern New Mexico, while southeastern areas are cooler thanks to the backdoor cold fronts that moved in on Friday. Breezier winds will return Sunday and will help kick off a warming trend across the state, along with an elevated fire threat in eastern New Mexico.
Warmer weather will continue building in across the state throughout the upcoming week. A few isolated rain chances will return Monday in parts of New Mexico, but some of that rain may evaporate before reaching the ground.
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