A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to unfreeze funds earmarked for a children’s program in Maine after they were suspend amid an ongoing row over transgender athletes.
On Friday, District Court Judge John Woodcock issued a temporary restraining order in a case brought by the state of Maine against the US Department of Agriculture.
The case stemmed from a disagreement between the USDA and the state over funding for a children’s nutrition program. USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins said she was withdrawing federal funding for the program over the participation of transgender athletes in sport.
The children’s nutrition program was due to receive millions in federal funding.
Back in February, President Trump and State Governor Janet Mills sparred at the White House over the President’s Executive Order to rescind all funding from educational programs that “deprive women and girls of fair athletic opportunities.”
When President Trump told Governor Mills she’d “better comply,” she responded that she would see the administration in court.
The new court order came as state officials in Maine said they would not comply with the President’s Executive Order.
An investigation by the US Department of Education that concluded last month found that the Maine Department of Education had violated Title IX by allowing biological males to participate in girls’ sports.