May 15 decision finds federal agency overstepped in interpreting Title VII to require accommodations for transgender employees
A federal judge in Texas has sided with the state of Texas and the Heritage Foundation, striking down Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) guidance that directed employers to accommodate transgender workers in accordance with a 2020 Supreme Court ruling.
In a decision issued May 15, U.S. District Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk granted summary judgment to Texas and the conservative think tank, ruling that the EEOC overreached in its interpretation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act following the Supreme Court’s decision in Bostock v. Clayton County. The EEOC had issued guidance stating that Title VII’s prohibition on sex discrimination required employers to allow transgender employees to use bathrooms and pronouns aligned with their gender identity.
The ruling halts enforcement of the EEOC’s guidance in Texas, following a lawsuit brought in 2024 that argued the guidance went beyond what the Supreme Court’s ruling mandated. That decision in Bostock held that discrimination based on transgender status is a form of sex discrimination but did not address issues like bathroom access or pronoun usage in the workplace.
Judge Kacsmaryk’s order echoes arguments made by Texas and the Heritage Foundation that the EEOC’s guidance amounted to legislative rulemaking without congressional authorization. The court determined that the agency’s directive improperly bypassed the formal rulemaking process and imposed requirements not clearly mandated by the Bostock ruling.
The Department of Justice, defending the EEOC, had argued that the guidance was a permissible interpretation of existing law under the Supreme Court’s precedent. However, Judge Kacsmaryk disagreed, writing that federal agencies “must follow proper rulemaking procedures when attempting to bind employers under threat of enforcement.”
The case represents one of several legal disputes following the Bostock ruling, as courts and agencies navigate its application beyond the issue of hiring and firing. The decision also reflects broader national debates over the scope of transgender protections under federal law, especially when federal agencies issue interpretations that states challenge as regulatory overreach.
The EEOC has not yet commented on whether it will appeal the ruling. Any appeal would go to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.
Tags: EEOC, Title VII, transgender rights, Texas federal court, Bostock v. Clayton
Excerpt:
A federal judge in Texas ruled on May 15, 2025, that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) overstepped its authority when it issued guidance requiring employers to accommodate transgender workers under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. The ruling came in a case brought by the state of Texas and the Heritage Foundation, who argued the EEOC improperly interpreted the Supreme Court’s Bostock v. Clayton County decision. The court’s order blocks the guidance in Texas and sets up a likely appeal to the Fifth Circuit.