USDA agrees to not freeze Maine nutrition funds over transgender athletes

Source: Reuters

U.S. President Donald Trump's administration agreed on Friday to refrain from unilaterally cutting off Maine's access to federal funding used to feed school children, ending one of several legal fights stemming from the state's refusal to comply with his demands to ban transgender athletes from girls' sports teams.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture settled with the Democratic-led state three weeks after a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order blocking it from cutting off federal funds used for nutrition programs.

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The settlement does not affect the Trump administration's decision to sue Maine over allegations that it is violating Title IX, which prohibits sex-based discrimination in education programs, or the U.S. Department of Education's decision to launch an administrative proceeding to cut off all federal education funding for Maine's public schools.

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The Education Department proceeding puts about $250 million Maine receives annually for school funding into jeopardy. The funding at issue with USDA was a smaller sum, about $3 million.

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Read more: https://www.reuters.com/legal/usda-agrees-not-freeze-maine-nutrition-funds-over-transgender-athletes-2025-05-02/