On June 16, the National Women’s Law Center submitted comments in opposition to three Direct Final Rules (DFRs) issued by the Department of Energy (DOE) on May 15, 2025, that seek to undo crucial, longstanding civil rights protections under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, among other laws. 

NWLC submitted comments urging DOE to withdraw these harmful DFRs: 

  • The Title IX Athletics DFR, which attempts to remove a rule that requires schools to allow students to try out for a sex-separated sports team that is unavailable to them. This would decrease athletic opportunities for students that have historically been limited—usually women and girls.  
  • The Title IX Gender-Conscious Programming DFR, which attempts to remove a rule allowing schools to take affirmative steps to address structural and historical obstacles leading to underrepresentation of women and girls in certain fields, like STEM.  
  • The Title VI Disparate Impact DFR, which attempts to remove several rules that protect against the discriminatory effects of policies and practices that seem neutral on their face but disproportionately harm historically marginalized communities, especially communities of color. 

DFRs allow federal agencies to expedite the usual, lengthy rulemaking process, and do not provide for the traditional public notice and comment opportunity on proposed rules. Agencies can automatically implement proposed changes with DFRs, unless they receive “significant adverse comments” in opposition. But DFRs are meant for noncontroversial, technical changes to regulations—not to undo longstanding civil rights protections like the ones the DOE is seeking to remove from Title IX, Title VI, and other civil rights laws. This is unacceptable and deeply concerning. The Trump administration is counting on people not paying attention, and it may use the same strategy to launch attacks on civil rights protections through other agencies. 

But we are paying attention. That’s why NWLC submitted comments in opposition to these attacks and spearheaded a campaign for others to submit comments—spurring over 12,500 submissions. As our comments and the thousands of others make clear, using DFRs to remove civil rights protections is procedurally deficient and harmful for all—especially women and girls and people of color—and they must be withdrawn.   

 

Read NWLC’s Comment Addressing DOE’s attacks on Title IX athletics and gender-conscious programming protections here. 

Read NWLC’s Comment Addressing DOE’s attacks on Title VI disparate impact protections here.