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No fewer than 11 states and two territories have complied with a recent directive from the federal government to eliminate references of gender identity and the existence of trans and non-binary people from a national sex education initiative, authorities stated.

The administration established a recent cutoff for removing these mentions, threatening the loss of millions in federal funds. Nearly all of the agreeing jurisdictions have Republican-controlled lawmaking bodies and mostly GOP state leaders.

Legal Challenges and Financial Disputes

An additional sixteen jurisdictions and the nation's capital have initiated legal action challenging the administration's demand, arguing it infringes on legislative power, which established the $75m sexual health initiative, known as the Personal Responsibility Education Program (Prep).

All states participating in the legal challenge are governed by Democrat governors.

In a late Monday judicial ruling, a federal judge prevented the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), which oversees Prep, from withholding funding to the suing jurisdictions if they refuse to comply.

“HHS fails to show that the new grant conditions are justified, let alone offer any valid reason, other than an excuse, for its decisions,” stated Ann Aiken, a U.S. district judge in the state. “The department offers no proof that it made factual findings or took into account the legal goals.”

Program Goals and Government Scrutiny

The program seeks to inform adolescents on positive interactions and how to prevent pregnancy and the spread of sexually transmitted infections.

In April, the federal government demanded all jurisdictions receiving Prep funds to provide a version of their curriculum to the department and its subsidiary, the Administration for Children and Families, for a “medical accuracy review”.

By late summer, the government sent letters to 46 states and territories, informing them that, during the evaluation, it had discovered “material in the educational programs that fall outside the purview of Prep’s authorizing statute.”

In particular, the administration claimed it had identified evidence of “gender ideology,” a phrase often used by rightwing factions to describe the idea that gender is a fluid cultural concept and that transgender individuals are real.

Specific Examples of Requested Changes

The administration instructed Illinois to drop a lesson that said: “Adolescents may identify in ways that differ from their biological sex.”

It told another state to eliminate a sentence from a middle school lesson that stated: “Individuals regardless of identity need to know how to avoid pregnancy and STDs.”

Moreover, health instructors in numerous states could no longer be instructed to “show tolerance and understanding for all students, regardless of personal characteristics, including race, cultural background, religion, social class, orientation or gender identity,” according to the notices sent to states.

Official Statements and Jurisdictional Reactions

“Accountability is coming,” declared Andrew Gradison, interim leader of the Administration for Children and Families, in a announcement. “Federal funds will not be used to negatively influence of the youth or promote harmful political doctrines.”

Multiple jurisdictions and regions confirmed they would remove the references or had completed the process. These include eleven specific states, as well as the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Northern Mariana Islands.

Two other states, the states, said their Prep curricula never contained the terminology mentioned in the administration’s letters.

Effects on Adolescents and Mental Health

Collectively, these states are inhabited by over 120,000 transgender individuals aged 13 to 17, based on projections from a university department.

“When the aim is to support youth and give them a secure environment, I’m not sure why we are stomping on the most vulnerable youth in the community,” said an advocate, who heads Rise that offers health instruction in Tennessee.

“If authorities state that there’s something incorrect about you and the educators aren’t allowed to provide information or they have to out you to your parents – when you know that that’s not safe – that’s detrimental to psychological well-being.”

Almost 50% of trans and non-binary youth contemplated self-harm in the past year, according to a 2024 survey from a suicide-prevention group. School support for these youths is linked to lower rates of attempted suicide, the organization discovered.

Previous Actions and Ongoing Disputes

Previously, the Trump administration ordered California to remove references to gender identity from its Prep curriculum.

When the Democratic-led state refused, the government revoked its Prep grant, cutting approximately $12m in government money and stopping health initiatives in schools, youth centers and group homes for foster children.

The California health department is challenging the termination. So far, it has been unable to replace the lost funding.

The Trump administration has also told educators who obtain funding from two other federal sex education initiatives, the $50m SRAE program and the $101 million TPPP initiative, that they may not teach about “gender-related concepts.”

An early October judicial ruling blocked the administration from altering one program, while the Monday court order prohibits it from modifying the other program in the suing jurisdictions that sued over the initiative.

The Administration for Children and Families did not immediately respond to a request for comment.