Thursday, January 29, 2026-The U.S. Department of Education has concluded that the California Department of Education violated federal law by effectively pressuring schools to hide information about students’ gender identity from their parents.
A federal investigation found that California’s policies stemming from Assembly Bill 1955 a state law that prohibits schools from requiring staff to disclose a student’s gender identity or “gender transition” to parents without consent conflict with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), a federal law granting parents the right to access their children’s education records. The Education Department’s Student Privacy Policy Office determined that by creating conditions that led districts to conceal student information, California put itself and local schools on a path of noncompliance with federal law.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon sharply criticized the state’s policies, saying the Trump administration’s investigation showed California officials “egregiously abused” their authority by encouraging local districts to withhold information about students’ gender identity from families.
Federal officials also cited practices such as “gender support plans” stored in separate systems allegedly designed to avoid parental access, a move the department says directly violates parents’ rights under FERPA to inspect all education records related to their child. California was given options to resolve the violations voluntarily, including clearer guidance to districts that such records must be accessible to parents upon request and formal assurances of compliance with federal rules.
The dispute highlights a growing federal‑state clash over parental rights and student privacy. California has maintained that its law protects vulnerable students from being “outed” to families against their will and does not mandate nondisclosure.
Critics of the federal finding argue the state’s approach addresses safety and privacy concerns for LGBTQ+ youth. However, federal officials have made clear that state laws cannot override federal parental access rights, and failure to comply with FERPA obligations could put at risk the billions of dollars in education funding California receives each year.
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