AMARILLO, Texas (CN) — The state of Texas sued the Biden administration in federal court Monday, opposing new guidance from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission allowing exceptions in the workplace for gay and transgender employees regarding use of gender pronouns, dress codes and bathrooms.
Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton said the state, as an employer, has the “sovereign right” to choose its own workplace policies regarding bathroom usage and that the EEOC guidance amounts to “extreme federal overreach” by President Joe Biden.
“States should be able to choose protection of privacy for their employers over subjective views of gender, and this illegal guidance puts many women and children at risk,” Paxton said after filing the lawsuit. “If the Biden administration thinks they can force states to comply with their political agenda, my office will fight against their radical attempt at social change."
He added, "These backdoor attempts to force businesses, including the state of Texas, to align with their beliefs is unacceptable.”
Released on June 15, the EEOC guidance relies on a U.S. Supreme Court ruling from last year in Bostock v. Clayton County. In a 6-3 ruling authored by Justice Neil Gorsuch, the high court's majority held that Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 extends employment discrimination protections to cover gay and transgender people.
Texas’ lawsuit claims the guidance violates Title VII by treating sex and gender identity the same.
“The June 15 guidance explicitly allows sex-specific bathrooms and implicitly allows sex-specific dress codes and pronoun usage policies as a general matter,” the 19-page complaint states. "But it then ‘tries to work around [those concessions] with a linguistic device’ by conflating ‘sex’ with ‘gender identity.’”
Texas claims it will face possible liability for not complying, citing likely “EEOC investigations, Justice Department enforcement actions and suits by ‘private attorneys general.’” It seeks an injunction and declaratory judgment for violations of the Administrative Procedure Act, Title VII, the First Amendment and the 11th Amendment.
Paxton’s lawsuit comes a month after 20 other states sued the Biden administration in Chattanooga federal court over Bostock guidance by the EEOC and the U.S. Department of Education in favor of transgender people.
The EEOC did not immediately respond to an email message requesting comment after office hours Monday evening.
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