Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is leading a multistate coalition supporting the Trump administration’s effort to reverse a Biden-era disability rule that expanded protections to include “gender dysphoria.”
The move comes after Paxton and other states challenged the 2024 regulation, arguing it diverted resources from people with disabilities.
The Biden administration’s rule had sought to expand the definition of “disability” under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. It included “gender dysphoria,” despite statutory language that explicitly excludes “gender identity disorders not resulting from physical impairments.”
The Trump administration has now issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to reverse this inclusion. The proposal would restore what supporters call the proper limits of federal disability law.
In 2024, Paxton led states in filing a lawsuit against the rule.
The coalition argued it would harm state budgets and operations while threatening services for those relying on federal disability assistance.
“This victory stops the Biden Administration’s radical attempt to force states to comply with its woke gender ideology at the expense of Americans who rely on disability assistance,” Paxton said in a news release.
Paxton added: “I am in full support of the Trump Administration’s decision to prevent federal funds from being diverted to an unlawful, radical agenda and reverse Biden’s illegal attempt to rewrite the law.”
The attorney general praised the reversal, stating: “Thanks to the Trump Administration’s leadership, states will no longer be forced to comply with a ludicrous, woke rule that Congress explicitly prohibited.”
The multistate coalition has submitted a formal comment in support of the proposed revision. The document outlines legal arguments against the Biden-era rule and endorses the Trump administration’s approach.