A federal magistrate judge has ordered the Maine Principals’ Association to supply the rosters of school athletic teams to the federal government as part of an ongoing Department of Justice lawsuit against the state over transgender athletes.
However, the association will not be required to send a list of all known transgender athletes in Maine.
As reported by Madi Smith of Maine Public, the service that operates Maine Public Radio, U.S. Magistrate Judge Karen Frink Wolf ruled Tuesday that the Maine Principals Association can release the names of student-athletes to the federal government because there is nothing sensitive about athletic rosters, which are already publicly available.
Frink Wolf futher noted the MPA did not have to release a list of names of transgender athletes, writing "the burden of producing such sensitive records outweighs any likely benefit."
The decision comes after the Department of Justice subpoenaed the Maine Principals' Association for documents last summer.
"In its lawsuit, the Trump administration alleges that Maine is violating the equal protection clause under Title IX by allowing transgender athletes to compete on girls' teams," Maine Public's Smith reported. "The Maine Principals' Association and Portland Public Schools then asked a federal judge to block those requests."
