NORFOLK, Va. - — Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares says the Youngkin administration's policies for transgender students due not violate state or federal laws.
Miyares issued the opinion following the request of Gov. Youngkin.
The opinion says the policies comply with the Equal Protection Clause, Title IX, and the Virginia Human Rights Act.
Last month, the Department of Education finalized policies for transgender students, which say parents need to consent to name or pronoun changes for children.
They also say students should use the bathroom of their biological sex.
Staff can only refer to students by another name or pronoun if a student or parent submits a request to the school in writing.
Previously, the polices under the Northam administration said school staff should address students by names and pronouns that reflect their gender identity.
As school boards debate the new policies, some have decided not to, including Prince William County Public Schools.
In a statement, the school system cited the Gavin Grimm case.
Grimm was a transgender student at Gloucester High School who sued the school board in 2015 when they stopped allowing him to use the boy's restroom.
Grimm argued the board was violating his rights under the Fourteenth Amendment and Title IX.
In 2020, a federal appeals court ruled in favor of Grimm, which affirmed a 2018 district court ruling.
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Miyares directly responds to the Grimm case and its potential impacts on the model policies, saying the ruling did not "impose a blanket rule" on bathrooms.
“This official Attorney General Opinion simply confirms what the overwhelming number of Virginians already know; parents have a fundamental right to the care, upbringing, and education of their children," Miyares said in a statement. "These policies are fully compliant with the law, and school boards across the Commonwealth should support and implement them. It's not just common sense, it's the law."
