July 13, 2016
The Honorable John B. King, Jr.
Secretary
U.S. Department of Education
400 Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington, D.C. 20202
Dear Secretary King,
On behalf of the National Women’s Law Center and over 80 undersigned organizations, we write in
support of the U.S. Department of Education’s efforts to address sex discrimination in our nation’s
schools. Specifically, the 2010 Dear Colleague Letter on Bullying and Harassment, the 2011 Dear
Colleague Letter on Sexual Violence and accompanying 2014 Questions and Answers on Title IX and
Sexual Violence, and the 2016 Dear Colleague Letter on Transgender Students have provided much
needed clarification of what Title IX requires schools to do to prevent and address sex discrimination in
educational programs. These guidance documents and increased enforcement of Title IX by the Office for
Civil Rights have spurred schools to address cultures that for too long have contributed to hostile
environments which deprive many students of equal educational opportunities.
Unfortunately, the Department is facing unwarranted criticism for doing its job. Some advocacy
organizations, law professors, and legislators claim that the Department violated the Administrative
Procedure Act (APA) by issuing the above guidance documents without going through a formal notice
and comment process. They also allege that grievance procedures outlined in the 2011 sexual violence
guidance violate due process rights of students accused of sexual assault. Both of these arguments are
without merit.
First, despite what detractors claim, the guidance letters under attack are not new rules but simply
clarifications of existing rights under Title IX. 1 As such, they were not required to go through the notice
and comment process. 2 As recently as 2015, the Supreme Court has reaffirmed that the APA allows
federal agencies to issue “interpretive rules” that explain how the agency construes the laws and
regulations it enforces. 3 Interpretive rules do not require notice and comment. 4 Because the guidance
documents set forth above are interpretive rules clarifying the Department’s construction of Title IX, the
Department did not violate the APA in issuing them.
Nor does the 2011 sexual violence guidance deprive accused students of due process. Since the Title IX
regulations were issued in 1975, educational programs have been required to create “grievance procedures
providing for prompt and equitable resolution” of complaints (emphasis added). 5 The 2011 guidance
1

Furthermore, the 2011 guidance clarified a 2001 guidance document on sexual harassment that did go through an
elective notice and comment period.
2
Perez v. Mortgage Bankers Ass'n, 135 S. Ct. 1199, 1204 (2015); 5 U.S.C. § 553(b)(A).
3
Id., 135 S. Ct. at 1204; Shalala v. Guernsey Memorial Hospital, 514 U.S. 87, 99 (1995); Lincoln v. Vigil, 508 U.S.
182, 196-97 (1993); Chrysler Corp. v. Brown, 441 U.S. 281, 302, n. 31 (1979); United States v. Florida East Coast
Railway Co., 410 U.S. 224, 240-41 (1972); 5 U.S.C. § 553(b)(A).
4
Perez, 135 S. Ct. at 1204.
5
34 C.F.R. §106.8(b).

 further clarified what constitutes an equitable grievance procedure. Namely, the Department reminded
schools that both the complainant and the respondent should have the same rights in any grievance
procedure—e.g., the same right to review documents, the same right to counsel, the same right to present
witnesses and evidence, and the same right to an appeal.
Moreover, the Department clarified that an equitable grievance procedure means that both the
complainant and respondent bear the same burden of proof—i.e., that schools should use the
preponderance of the evidence standard. This standard is used in cases alleging discrimination under other
civil rights laws,6 in civil lawsuits between two private parties (including suits related to possibly criminal
conduct such as tort actions for battery or murder/wrongful death), and in 80 percent of schools according
to a 2002 report issued well before the 2011 guidance. In fact, by demanding equitable treatment of both
the respondent and complainant, the Department’s interpretation of Title IX provides students accused of
sexual assault with procedural protections beyond those the Supreme Court has said are guaranteed under
the U.S. Constitution. 7
The Department’s Title IX guidance letters and enforcement have been vital in the effort to ensure that
students are not discriminated against based on sex in school. Yet, as advocates for civil rights, women’s
rights, disability rights, LGBTQ rights, immigrants’ rights, racial justice, economic justice, education, and
youth, we know that such discrimination continues to deny students equal access to education at all levels.
We urge the Department to continue helping schools understand their legal obligations—for example, by
providing materials and guidance focused on sexual violence in elementary and secondary schools—
which affects a significant portion of the children we represent.
Thank you for your vigilance in ensuring that schools live up to their obligations under federal civil rights
laws and for fighting discrimination in the classroom and on campus. If you have any questions, please
contact Neena Chaudhry (nchaudhry@nwlc.org) or Adaku Onyeka-Crawford (aocrawford@nwlc.org) at
the National Women’s Law Center at 202.588.5180.
Sincerely,
National Women’s Law Center, joined by:
Alliance for Girls
American Association of University Women (AAUW)
AAUW-San Francisco
American Federation of Teachers (AFT)
American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee
Anti-Defamation League
The Arc
Asian Pacific American Labor Alliance, AFL-CIO (APALA)
6

See, e.g., Elston v. Talladega Cnty. Bd. of Educ., 997 F.2d 1394, 1407 (11th Cir. 1993); Lynch v. Belden & Co.,
882 F.2d 262, 267, 269 (7th Cir. 1989); 42 U.S.C. § 20001 (2006).
7
See Goss v. Lopez, 419 U.S. 565, 579 & 583 (1975) (“[S]tudents facing suspension [in public educational
institutions] must be given some kind of notice and afforded some kind of hearing. . . . We stop short of construing
the Due Process Clause to require, countrywide, that hearings in connection with short suspensions must afford the
student the opportunity to secure counsel, to confront and cross-examine witnesses supporting the charge, or to call
his own witnesses to verify his version of the incident.”).

 Association of University Centers on Disabilities
Bay Area Girls Rock Camp
BLMNYC/EBG
The Body Positive
Breaking the Silence Philly (BTSPHL)
Brockport Social Work Association
Campus Pride
Casa de Esperanza: National Latin@ Network
Center for Women Policy Studies
Champion Women
Clearinghouse on Women's Issues
Education Law Center-PA
End Rape On Campus (EROC)
FAIR Girls
Feminist Majority Foundation
FISA Foundation
Freedom Network USA
Futures Without Violence
Georgetown Law Center on Poverty and Inequality
Girls for Gender Equity
Girls Inc.
Girls On the Run International
GLSEN
GO! Athletes
Healthy Teen Network
Human Rights Campaign
In Our Own Voices, Inc.
It's Time Network
Know Your IX
The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights
League of United Latin American Citizens
Legal Momentum
MALDEF
The Maryland Women's Heritage Center
Mosaic Family Services
NAACP
National Alliance for Partners in Equity (NAPE)
National Alliance to End Sexual Violence
National Asian Pacific American Women's Forum (NAPAWF)
National Center for Lesbian Rights
National Center for Transgender Equality
National Coalition Against Domestic Violence
National Council of Jewish Women
National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ)
National Council of La Raza

 The National Crittenton Foundation
National Disability Rights Network
National Domestic Violence Hotline
National Education Association
National Organization for Women
National Women's Political Caucus
National Women's Political Caucus of Calif.
National Women's Political Caucus of Fresno, Inc.
National Women's Political Caucus, Sacramento
NWPC Silicon Valley
PAVE: Promoting Awareness, Victim Empowerment
Peers Envisioning and Engaging in Recovery Services (PEERS)
The Red Web Foundation
Rights4Girls
Robert F. Kennedy Children Action Corps.
San Francisco Girls Chorus
Southeast Asia Resource Action Center
Stop Sexual Assault in Schools (SSAIS.org)
SurvJustice Inc.
Title IX and Clery Act Consulting, LLC
TransAthlete.com
Turning Heads
Waddell Consulting Services
Willpowered Woman
Women's Law Project
Women's Sports Foundation
Xinachtli Rites of Passage
Young Women's Freedom Center