DOJ Sues Maryland School District Over Gender-Identity Records, Says August Policy Fix Fell Short

The Justice Department sued the Anne Arundel County Board of Education on Tuesday, alleging that the Maryland school system's gender identity policies deny parents rights guaranteed by two federal student privacy laws. The 31-page complaint, reviewed by The Digital Free Press, also shows that the board rewrote part of its policy in August after federal education officials found it out of compliance, a change the department says does "not adequately protect parents' rights."

The case, United States v. Board of Education of Anne Arundel County, was filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland. It is brought under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), which lets parents inspect and seek correction of their children's education records, and the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA), which requires parental consent before minors are surveyed on certain sensitive topics.

What the Anne Arundel Complaint Alleges

According to the complaint, Anne Arundel County Public Schools (AACPS) policies direct staff to "solicit and document gender-related information from students without parental knowledge or consent" and allow staff to limit parental involvement based on a "safety concern," with "no process for parents to rebut that claim." The complaint says the district's regulation, known as JQ-RA, treats information about a student's gender identity as "confidential medical information" and states that a student's self-identification "is sufficient" to change the gender listed in the official student record.

The department also alleges that AACPS reports students' gender identity information to the Maryland State Department of Education without notifying parents or giving them a chance to challenge it.

"Schools should not discuss preferred pronouns or 'gender identity' with a student without parental notification and consent," Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Civil Rights Division said in a statement.

An August Policy Change

The filing lays out a timeline. On July 22, 2026, the Secretary of Education determined that AACPS was "out of substantial compliance" with FERPA, and on July 29 the Justice Department demanded that the district stop the violation. On Aug. 18, the school board revised a section of the regulation to say that nothing in it "shall be construed to limit or otherwise interfere with" parents' FERPA rights, including the right to inspect a student's complete education record. The Education Department then found the district out of compliance with PPRA on Sept. 3, according to the complaint.

The Justice Department argues the revision was not enough. The complaint says the board "made no other changes" to the regulation and that its policies still give parents no way to ask the district to correct or remove gender information in their children's records, or to get a hearing on such a request.

The Family at the Center of the Case

The complaint cites one family, identified by the pseudonyms John and Jane Doe, whose daughter is a senior at a high school in the district. The parents filed their own lawsuit against the district, Doe v. Bedell, in the same court in July. According to the complaint, the parents received a December 2025 email from a staff member that referred to their daughter by a male name, followed by a recall notice and a corrected email.

The complaint alleges that a May 2026 field-trip roster emailed to other parents listed the male name next to the family's surname, and that when the parents asked for their daughter's records, staff told them "some records required an appointment and others a subpoena."

The department asks the court to declare the policies unlawful, bar enforcement of Regulation JQ-RA or similar practices, and order the district to offer parents hearings on record content and to obtain written consent before covered surveys.

District Disputes the Allegations

In a statement reported by WBAL-TV, AACPS said it "disagrees with the allegations and stands by its compliance with FERPA and PPRA" and had been in "regular contact with the Department of Justice in a good faith effort to resolve their concerns." The district said it would address the claims in its court filings. No court has ruled on the allegations.

Sources: U.S. Department of Justice, "Justice Department Sues to Stop Secret Gender Transitions at Anne Arundel County Public Schools" (Oct. 27, 2026): https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/justice-department-sues-stop-secret-gender-transitions-anne-arundel-county-public-schools ; Complaint, United States v. Board of Education of Anne Arundel County, No. 1:26-cv-04499 (D. Md.): https://www.justice.gov/crt/media/1468906/dl ; WBAL-TV: https://www.wbaltv.com/article/anne-arundel-county-schools-doj-lawsuit-gender-identity-policy/74264786