Idaho's Anti-Transgender School Restroom Law Blocked by Court

A federal appeals court has temporarily blocked enforcement of Idaho’s anti-transgender school restroom law, which was set to go into effect Thursday.

A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit last week granted a preliminary injunction stopping enforcement of the law. Senate Bill 1100, which Republican Gov. Brad Little signed in March, bars trans students in public and charter schools from using multi-occupancy restrooms, changing rooms, and other sex-segregated facilities consistent with their gender identity. Every such facility is to be designated for “male persons only or female persons only.”

The injunction will stay in place while the appellate court further reviews previous actions regarding the law. The review is expected to take place over the next few months, according to a press release from Lambda Legal.

The organization and two law firms filed the suit in July on behalf of a seventh-grade transgender student identified by the pseudonym Rebecca Roe and the Sexuality and Gender Alliance, an LGBTQ+ student organization at Boise High School. The case is known as Roe v. Critchfield; defendants include Idaho Superintendent of Public Instruction Debbie Critchfield, the Idaho State Board of Education, and the Boise school district.

The suit contends that the law violates the equal protection clause of the U.S. Constitution as well as Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, a federal statute banning sex discrimination in education.

The appellate ruling comes after a judge in a lower court, U.S. District Judge David Nye, refused to extend a stay he’d put on the law.

“This ruling is a relief not only for our clients, but transgender students across Idaho, that they will be spared the indignity, stigma, and profound harm of this cruel and unconstitutional law as they go about their day at school,” Lambda Legal Senior Counsel Peter Renn said in the release. “School is a time to focus on studies and extracurriculars, not to stress about whether you will be able to use the restroom.”

“The Ninth Circuit’s order … which prevents harm from being inflicted on transgender students while it considers our appeal, is a powerful reminder that the law protects students from this type of discrimination,” added Lambda Legal Staff Attorney Kell Olson. “For years, transgender students have been able to use restrooms consistent with their gender at schools across Idaho for years without incident. This order will allow that inclusive practice to continue while we pursue our challenge.”