BALTIMORE — A federal judge in Maryland says the United States Department of Education (DOE) cannot require states and school districts to certify compliance with the Trump Administration's anti-discrimination policies, namely when it comes to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
Back in February DOE issued a letter to school districts ordering certified compliance, or else risk losing federal funding.
A group led by the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) sued claiming DOE's directive violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), as well as the First and Fifth Amendments of the Constitution.
DOE defended their letter saying it was merely a reminder for schools to follow existing civil rights laws.
Judge Stephanie Gallagher, disagreed.
Former President Barack Obama originally nominated Gallagher to the federal bench in 2015, but the U.S. Senate never held a confirmation vote.
She was twice renominated by President Donald Trump, during his first term, and was eventually sworn into office in 2019.
According to Gallagher, DOE "leapfrogged important procedural requirements," prompting them to "run headfirst into serious constitutional problems."
Two other federal judges, in Washington D.C. and New Hampshire, have also paused DOE's certification enforcement.
AFT President Randi Weingarten celebrated Gallagher's decision.
“This is a huge win for students, families and educators and a sweeping indictment of Donald Trump’s draconian attacks on the essence of public education,” said Weingarten. “Here, the government decided to put its thumb on the scale to chill teachers’ duty to create safe and welcoming classrooms where critical thinking is valued and history is presented in an open and honest way.
It's unclear, however, how long the injunction might last, as the appeals process is already underway.
In March the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals overturned a similar DEI related ruling issued by another Maryland judge.
That case stemmed from an Executive Order issued by President Trump requiring federally funded Non-Government Organizations to certify non-participation in DEI promotional efforts.
The panel of appellate judges provided this reasoning for overruling the district level judge.
"The so-called “Certification” and “Enforcement Threat” provisions apply only to conduct that violates existing federal anti-discrimination law. Nor do the Orders authorize the termination of grants based on a grantee’s speech or activities outside the scope of the funded activities. Rather, the “Termination” provision directs the termination of grants, subject to applicable legal limits, based only on the nature of the grant-funded activity itself. On this understanding, the government has shown the requisite likelihood that the challenged provisions do not on their face violate the First or Fifth Amendment."
For her part, Gallagher did cite the decision in her 76 page opinion, but decided against following its guidance stating the following.
"All three members of the panel highlighted that a challenge to a “particular agency action implementing the Executive Orders,” would be different. This is one such case. Before this Court are two specific agency actions that require schools and educators to comply with them or face substantial enumerated sanctions."
It should be noted the Fourth Circuit also signed off on permitting the Trump Administration to withhold DEI training grants for teachers, after a lower level judge ruled they couldn't.
