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At least eleven jurisdictions and a pair of regions have agreed to a new directive from the federal government to remove references of gender identity and the existence of transgender and non-binary individuals from a federal sex education initiative, authorities stated.

The administration established a recent cutoff for stripping these references, threatening the withdrawal of millions in federal funds. Almost every of the complying states have GOP-led lawmaking bodies and mostly Republican governors.

Court Battles and Financial Conflicts

Sixteen other states and Washington DC have filed a lawsuit challenging the administration's demand, arguing it infringes on legislative power, which established the $75m sexual health initiative, known as the PREP initiative.

All states participating in the legal challenge are governed by Democratic governors.

In a late Monday court order, a federal judge prevented the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which manages Prep, from cutting financial support to the suing jurisdictions if they refuse to comply.

“The agency does not demonstrate that the updated requirements are reasonable, nor does it offer any valid reason, other than pretext, for its actions,” stated Ann Aiken, a federal jurist in Oregon. “The department offers no proof that it made factual findings or considered the legal goals.”

Program Goals and Federal Review

The program aims to educate adolescents on healthy relationships and how to prevent unplanned parenthood and the transmission of STIs.

In April, the federal government demanded all states and territories obtaining program money to provide a copy of their curriculum to HHS and its agency, the ACF office, for a health content assessment.

By late summer, the government sent letters to 46 states and territories, stating that, during the evaluation, it had discovered “material in the curricula that fall outside the scope of the program's legal framework.”

Specifically, the administration claimed it had uncovered evidence of “gender ideology,” a term often used by rightwing factions to refer to the notion that gender is a changeable social construct and that trans and non-binary people exist.

Specific Examples of Requested Changes

The administration directed one state to drop a curriculum that said: “Adolescents may identify in ways that differ from their biological sex.”

It told North Carolina to delete a sentence from a middle school lesson that read: “People of all sexual orientations and gender identities need to know how to avoid pregnancy and STDs.”

Additionally, health instructors in many jurisdictions could no longer be told to “show tolerance and understanding for all participants, regardless of individual traits, including race, cultural background, faith, economic status, sexual orientation or gender identity,” based on the letters sent to jurisdictions.

Government Comments and Jurisdictional Reactions

“Accountability is coming,” said a federal official, interim leader of the Administration for Children and Families, in a statement. “Government money will not be used to negatively influence of the youth or advance dangerous ideological agendas.”

Several states and territories stated they would remove the references or had completed the process. These include eleven specific states, as well as the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Northern Mariana Islands.

Two other states, Alabama and South Dakota, said their educational programs never contained the terminology referenced in the administration’s letters.

Impact on Youth and Mental Health

Together, these states are home to more than 120k transgender individuals aged 13 to 17, based on estimates from a university department.

“If our goal is to support youth and give them a safe space, I’m not sure why we are targeting the at-risk teenagers in the community,” said an advocate, who heads an organization that provides sex education in one state.

“When the government says that there’s something incorrect about you and the educators aren’t allowed to tell you things or they have to disclose your identity to family – when you know that that’s not secure – that’s horrible for mental health.”

Nearly half of trans and non-binary youth contemplated self-harm in the past year, according to a recent study from a mental health organization. School support for these youths is linked to lower rates of attempted suicide, the organization found.

Earlier Incidents and Continuing Conflicts

Earlier this year, the Trump administration instructed California to cut mentions to gender identity from its educational program.

When the Democratic-led state refused, the administration revoked its funding, eliminating approximately $12m in federal funding and stopping health initiatives in schools, youth centers and care facilities.

The state agency is appealing the withdrawal. So far, it has been unsuccessful in replace the withdrawn money.

The Trump administration has also told instructors who obtain funding from additional national programs, the $50 million SRAE program and the $101m Teen Pregnancy Prevention Program (TPPP), that they cannot teach about “gender-related concepts.”

An recent judicial ruling prevented the government from changing one program, while the latest ruling stops it from changing SRAE in the suing jurisdictions that challenged the initiative.

The ACF office did not immediately respond to a inquiry.