SAVANNAH, Ga. (WSAV) - Seventeen states, including Georgia and South Carolina, have signed on to a lawsuit that targets a "gender dysphoria" clause in a law that provides accommodations for students with learning challenges.
However, opponents of the lawsuit say the argument made in the lawsuit, Texas v. Becerra, also challenges the constitutionality of all accommodations under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, also known as 504 plans.
"I'm one year into my master's program, and I have a 504 plan," Amanda Brandmire, a student at a local college and parent to school-age children, said. "I have biliteral hearing loss. So, I require captioning services for classrooms. So, a little bit of a panic that if I don't have that, I'm not going to be able to hear what the instructor says and I'm not going to be able to do my classwork."
By law, students qualify for a 504 plan if they have a physical or mental impairment that limits a major activity, a record of that impairment, and are regarded as having that impairment.
Texas v. Beccera was filed in response a Biden-era rule that added gender dysphoria as a qualifying condition for students to receive a 504.
"Page 37 of the lawsuit right there, section 504 is unconstitutional," Roland Mumford, a local attorney who often litigates 504-related cases, said. "Then it goes onto legal theory about spending clauses, and then on page 42 of the lawsuit, it says...unconstitutional. It is black and white. The Attorney General is just not being forthright. I mean, read the lawsuit."
Attorney General Chris Carr released this statement:
"The constitutionality of 504 was never in question. We are fighting one woke policy added by Biden for virtue signaling. The vast majority of Georgians — Rs and Ds — agree that so-called ‘gender dysphoria’ should not be treated as eligible for federal funds, as if it’s the same as Down syndrome or dyslexia or autism."
A spokesperson for Carr added, "We argue that Biden’s interpretation of Section 504 is unconstitutional. In the context of this lawsuit, that means that HHS could not revoke funds it oversees for the state’s failure to comply with Biden’s unlawfully imposed 'gender dysphoria' rule."
While the suit makes its way through the courts, Brandwire and her kids are left wondering how wide-reaching the effects of it could be.
"They were diagnosed with autism, ADHD, and learning disabilities as well as speech disorderst," she said. "So, they receive a lot of different services at the school and accommodations. That is kind of parents' concern that if 504 is first, IEP is next."
Read the lawsuit here: