OLYMPIA, WA – Washington State Superintendent of Public Instruction Chris Reykdal and Gov. Bob Ferguson are named in a Title IX complaint resolution filed Friday by Washington Parents Network.

WPN is a volunteer association of more than 2,600 parents whose goal is to protect the rights of parents and children.

The complaint was filed with the U.S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights.

WPN Executive Director David Spring told The Center Square the organization has been preparing the complaint for more than a year, but hoped it wouldn’t come to the point that it had to be filed.

“Title IX was passed 53 years ago, to end discrimination against girls and women in educational and athletic programs that receive federal funding,” Spring said in an email. “Our complaint details numerous violations of Title IX that have occurred and continue to occur in Washington state on a daily basis.”

On his first day back in the White House last month, President Donald Trump signed an executive order calling for the end of all “discriminatory” and “illegal” DEI – diversity, equity and inclusion – and accessibility mandates, programs, preferences, and activities in the federal government and federally funded institutions, including schools.

On Feb. 14, the U.S. Department of Education sent colleges and K-12 schools across the nation a letter detailing a two-week deadline to halt all identity-based programs, or risk losing federal funding.

Reykdal told school districts not to make changes to their existing policies, practices, and programming.

In a Feb. 20 video, Reykdal said transgender youth are protected in Washington.

“This is a biological question,” he said. “It is quite simply inaccurate to say biologically that there are only boys and there are only girls. Our state laws make clear that students get to identify and participate in activities based on the gender in which they identify. We’re going to uphold that law.”

According to Spring, about 20 school districts, mostly in eastern Washington, received a letter from Reykdal in late February, giving them 30 days to fully comply with Policy 3211, a state school policy that promotes gender-inclusive schools and protects students from discrimination and harassment based on gender identity or expression.

Several school board members in those districts and other districts submitted signed declarations which are included in the complaint.

One of them is from Enumclaw School Board Member Paul Fisher, who wrote, “State Superintendent Chris Reykdal has threatened to withhold state funding if our school board fails to comply with State Policies 3211 and 3211 P. At the same time, President Trump has issued a Presidential Order declaring that our school district will lose federal funding if our school board fails to comply with Title IX. This places our school board in an impossible position.”

Spring said a January federal ruling backs up their case.

“On Jan. 9th, a federal court ordered all 50 states to comply with Title IX and basically clarified what the meaning of Title IX was,” Spring explained. “Our hope after that was Washington state would immediately begin complying as many other states did. But our superintendent and governor have elected to ignore that law.”

Spring said when Trump signed an executive order telling states to comply with that federal order, he hoped things would change in Washington.

“Reykdal and Ferguson said they weren’t going to, so we felt we had no other choice but to file this complaint,” he continued. “Reykdal’s argument is that we have a state civil rights law that protects gender identity, and therefore, they don’t have to comply with the federal law. We disagree.”

According to Spring, Reykdal is ignoring two things.

“The first is the supremacy clause where federal laws supersede state laws,” he explained. “The second thing he is overlooking is that Title IX is written as a contract between the federal government and the states. And the state, in order to get federal funding, has to agree to uphold federal law. So, the federal government can withhold funding if the state fails to comply.”

Reykdal and Ferguson are violating their oaths of office by refusing to uphold federal law, according to Spring.

“There’s a debate over how much money could be withheld from the federal government, and Ferguson has said maybe it’s a few hundred million dollars, and we can just fund that from the state,” he said. “I actually think it’s closer to $1 to $2 billion, but regardless of the amount, they have both taken an oath of office and even if it was only one penny that was withheld, they’re both violating their oath of office.”

The Center Square reached out to OSPI about the complaint.

“We have continued to advise school districts to stay in compliance with state law, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender identity,” Chief Communications Officer Katy Payne said in an email. “The recent federal executive order attempts to override the authority of states and local school districts by requiring educational institutions to agree to discriminate against trans female athletes in order to continue receiving federal funds. Our job at OSPI is to communicate and uphold the law. An executive order is not law, and it does not override our state laws.”

The Governor’s Office did not respond to an email requesting comment.