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Schools and colleges largely could not ban nonbinary and transgender students from sports teams, the Biden administration said Thursday in a long-promised proposed rule to protect these students from discrimination. “Every student should be able to have the full experience of attending school in America, including participating in athletics, free from discrimination," U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona said in a statement that included details of the rule. (Jimenez, 4/6)

Under the Department of Education proposal, “categorically” barring transgender athletes in that way would be a violation of Title IX, which prohibits sex discrimination at educational institutions that receive federal funding. But it would give universities and K-12 schools the discretion to limit the participation of transgender students, if they conclude that including transgender athletes could undermine competitive fairness or potentially lead to sports-related injuries, a key part of the debate about transgender athletes in women’s sports. (Mervosh, Tumin and Sasani, 4/6)

The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to immediately reinstate a West Virginia law barring transgender athletes from playing on female sports teams from middle school through college, avoiding for now a stand on a controversial issue that has divided society. The 2021 law was challenged by 12-year-old Becky Pepper-Jackson, who wants to remain on her middle school’s girls track team. The law has largely been on hold since its passage, and an appeals court is reviewing its constitutionality. The law defines eligibility for certain sex-specific teams to “be based solely on the individual’s reproductive biology and genetics at birth.” (Barnes and Marimow, 4/6)

The Indiana Senate stripped down a bill restricting transgender schoolchildren's ability to use preferred names and pronouns Thursday to just require parental notification rather than consent of the change. The amendment, filed by Sen. Stacey Donato, R-Logansport, to House Bill 1608 also removes a clause that had protected teachers who refuse to use the new name or pronoun. (Charron and Dwyer, 4/6)

Kansas lawmakers approved a bill Thursday that would allow parents to opt their children from lessons on LGBTQ topics in school. The Republican-controlled Kansas House passed the bill with a 76-46 vote, paving the way for it to be sent to Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly (D). If enacted, the bill, which was passed by the state Senate last week, would allow parents to choose an alternate activity or lesson for their children in K-12 to a lesson or activity they feel “impairs the parent’s sincerely held beliefs, values or principles.” (Sforza, 4/6)

North Dakotans are awaiting word on whether Gov. Doug Burgum (R) will sign or veto a hefty package of bills that would restrict transgender rights, which was passed by the state Senate on Tuesday. The eight pieces of legislation would have wide-ranging effects on transgender minors and adults — from school sports to health care to workplace rights. If Burgum signs the bills, medical professionals would be prohibited from providing gender-affirming care to minors, transgender girls and women wouldn’t be allowed to join girls' sports teams from kindergarten through high school and college, and another would create a new rule for gender markers on birth certificates. (Kindy, 4/7)