Court rules religious universities can receive federal funding while adhering to their faith beliefs

An Oregon federal district court ruled Thursday that religious universities are allowed to receive federal funding while still adhering to their religious beliefs.

The case Hunter v. the U.S. Department of Education (DOED) was initially filed in March 2021 after 40 LGBTQ former students, who had applied to multiple religious schools that received federal funding, sought to amend Title IX’s provision allowing religious universities to discriminate based on sex, sexual orientation or gender identity and receive federal funding, according to the opinion. A judge ruled late Thursday to dismiss the case, effectively upholding the right of religious schools to practice their faith and obtain federal funding.

In the opinion, Judge Ann Aiken stated in the opinion that Congress had allowed for a limited exemption for religious institutions if they can prove that it is a religious organization that operates under “religious tenets.” She further explained that after reviewing the claims presented, the plaintiff’s case did not have standing based on the merits.

“In the course of litigation, the Court reviewed approximately 400 exhibits and thousands of pages of declarations from individual Plaintiffs detailing the treatment they experienced at their religious schools based on their sexual orientation and gender identity; from academic exclusion and denial of student housing, to coerced conversion therapy, to prohibition from forming LGBTQ+ support groups on campus,” the opinion stated. “However, the Court finds that Plaintiffs have not alleged the elements necessary to state a legal claim on the merits of their action.”

The judge also notes that while the plaintiffs stated that Title IX’s “narrow” exemption is designed to primarily discriminate based on sex, she points out that later in their arguments, the plaintiffs acknowledge that when “Congress enacted Title IX, protections for—or discrimination against sexual and gender minorities—were ‘of no concern.’” As a result, the court dismissed the request to amend Title IX.

During the lawsuit, a judge allowed three Christian colleges, represented by Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF), to join as co-defendants and argue the necessity of Title IX’s religious exemption, according to an ADF press release. David Cortman, ADF senior counsel and vice president of U.S. Litigation, applauded the court’s decision in the press statement.

“Title IX, which applies to schools receiving federal financial assistance, explicitly protects the freedom of religious schools to live out their deeply and sincerely held convictions,” Cortman said. “A group of activists asked the court to strip that protection away from schools that educate the next generation and advance the common good. The court correctly concluded that Title IX’s religious liberty exemption doesn’t violate any of the plaintiffs’ claimed rights.”

The DOED and attorneys for Hunter did not respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

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