The Maine Principals' Association told Trump administration officials this week that they should drop a high-profile investigation because the group does not receive federal funding.
On Monday, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) said the Maine Principals' Association (MPA) and Greely High School had violated a federal civil rights law by allowing transgender athletes to compete in girls sports. Federal officials gave the groups just 10 days to agree to a list of changes to avoid a potential federal lawsuit over transgender athletes.
But in a formal response sent Tuesday, an attorney for the Maine Principals' Association argued that the HHS Office of Civil Rights (OCR) lacks jurisdiction because Title IX — the law banning sex-based discrimination in educational settings — only applies to entitles that receive federal funding.
"Here, the MPA receives no direct or indirect federal funding as referenced in the March 5 and March 17, 2025, letters from OCR," attorney James Belleau wrote to the acting director of the office, Anthony Archeval. "Therefore, the MPA has no ability to accept or reject federal obligations as a condition of federal assistance it does not receive. Moreover, HHS/OCR is unable to withhold federal funds as a condition of compliance with Title IX because the MPA is not a recipient of federal financial assistance."
The eight-page "voluntary resolution agreement" sent Monday by HHS outlines how the the MPA, the Maine Department of Education and Greely High School in Cumberland can come back into compliance with Title IX. The agreement then warns that failure to do so would result in a referral to the Department of Justice "for appropriate action."
The principals' association would have to ban transgender athletes from girls sports. Greely High School would then have to follow the new policy. They would also have to offer training in complying with Title IX. And the state would have to return more than $180,000 in federal funds from HHS.
A spokesperson for the office of Attorney General Aaron Frey, which is representing the Department of Education, said Wednesday they had not yet formally responded to the proposed resolution agreement from HHS.
The MPA is a private, nonprofit organization that sets policies and regulates athletic and other interscholastic activities for all public high schools and some private schools in Maine. The associated reiterated in a statement on Wednesday that the organization's policies are based on the Maine Human Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination in extracurricular activities based on a student's gender identity.
"This issue is a policy question that should be decided by the Maine Legislature and by Congress," MPA said in the statement. "MPA’s only desire is to follow the enforceable law, which right now our legal council advises is the Maine Human Rights Act. We look forward to our elected leaders answering these important cultural questions."
There are several bills pending in the Maine Legislature to change the state's nondiscrimination laws regarding transgender athletes.
Maine has been in the national spotlight ever since a Republican state lawmaker, Rep. Laurel Libby of Auburn, posted on social media the picture and name of a Greely High School transgender athlete who had won a girls' track and field championship. The post quickly went viral and eventually came to the attention of President Donald Trump, who had signed an executive order banning transgender athletes from women's and girls sports.
Trump later publicly clashed with Gov. Janet Mills in a brief-but-tense exchange that drew national attention. When Trump pressed Mills on whether Maine would comply with the executive order, the governor said the state was following state and federal law and that she would "See you in court."
The Trump administration responded with investigations into Maine's compliance with Title IX. The administration has also moved to withhold millions of dollars in federal funding from the state only to reverse those decisions.
