WASHINGTON— The Heritage Foundation joined Attorney General Ken Paxton and the state of Texas in a lawsuit filed Thursday challenging the Biden administration's recent guidance from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The EEOC’s guidance, issued last spring, requires employers to allow men into women-only spaces, including restrooms and locker rooms, and forces employees to use pronouns that contradict a person’s biological sex. 

Dan Mauler, general counsel for The Heritage Foundation, commented on Thursday’s filing: 

“Heritage is proud to join the great state of Texas as co-plaintiff to fight another blatant abuse of federal power by the Biden-Harris administration The EEOC has exceeded the limits Congress placed on its authority and placed women at risk with the new guidance. We are proud to defend traditional American values, religious groups, small businesses, and American families from this illegal overreach.” 

The EEOC has exceeded its authority by redefining “sex” in Title VII to include “sexual orientation and gender identity.” Not only does this guidance violate the First Amendment by forcing employees to use pronouns that defy biological reality, but it also forces employers to adopt policies on “gender identity” that may conflict with their values, including religious beliefs. The guidance likewise jeopardizes the safety of women by allowing biological men into women’s restrooms and locker rooms. 

The lawsuit filed Thursday in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, asks the court to halt enforcement of this unlawful guidance.