Trump had previously warned Maine’s governor that the funds would be withheld if the state continued to allow men to play women’s sports.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) agreed to settle a lawsuit with Maine on May 2, after it withheld around $3 million in grant funding for nutrition programs in that state.
According to the terms of the settlement, the USDA and its employees cannot withhold Maine’s funding based on alleged Title IX violations “without first following all legally required procedures.” These requirements include consulting Congress and a 30-day delay before funding is pulled.
In exchange, Maine will drop its suit within two calendar days.
“It’s unfortunate that my office had to resort to federal court just to get USDA to comply with the law and its own regulations,” Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey said in a statement.
“But we are pleased that the lawsuit has now been resolved and that Maine will continue to receive funds as directed by Congress to feed children and vulnerable adults.”
The USDA and White House have not yet responded to a request for comment.
The funds were frozen after President Donald Trump said Maine was violating Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972—which prohibits sex-based discrimination in schools—by allowing males identifying as female to compete in women’s sports.
Trump had publicly warned Maine Gov. Janet Mills that her state was out of compliance with his Feb. 5 executive order “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” which promised to “rescind all funds from educational programs that deprive women and girls of fair athletic opportunities.”
“You’d better comply, because otherwise you’re not getting any federal funding,” Trump told Mills during a White House speech addressing the nation’s governors on Feb. 21.
“We’ll see you in court,” Mills replied.
Both sides made good on their threats: USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins informed Mills on April 2 that she “was freezing Maine’s federal funds for certain administrative and technological functions in schools.”
Frey responded with a lawsuit against the USDA on April 7, and U.S. District Judge John Woodcock Jr. ordered the funds unfrozen four days later.
Woodcock ruled on April 11 that the USDA had not followed proper legal procedure, since it failed to present evidence that Maine had violated Title IX to Congress before withholding the state’s funding. He also said withholding funds for food programs that are unrelated to the alleged sports violation was a “disconnect,” and procedurally unlawful.
Although Friday’s agreement has settled the issue around food funding, questions about Title IX remain a source of legal friction between Maine and the federal government.
On April 16, Attorney General Pam Bondi and Education Secretary Linda McMahon announced a civil lawsuit against Maine’s Education Department, saying their investigations revealed Maine was continuing to allow men to play women’s sports, in violation of Title IX.
During that announcement, Bondi read a letter from Frey in which he said Maine and the government were “indeed at an impasse” about the regulations.
“Nothing in Title IX or its implementing regulations prohibits schools from allowing transgender girls and women to participate on girls’ and women’s sports teams,” Frey said.
The DOJ stated that Title IX is “a civil rights law that guarantees women and girls equal protection in education and athletics.”