Texas v. Becerra: Disability law and gender dysphoria debate

Texas v. Becerra is a lawsuit signed by seventeen states including Iowa. They begin the complaint explaining how disability law was upended when the Biden administration added gender dysphoria as a part of the definition.

According to Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird’s statement, she had no intention to harm those with disabilities when becoming a plaintiff to the lawsuit. In Claims for Relief Count 3 it states that Section 504 is “unconstitutional.”

“You don’t have to be the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court to read the text of the lawsuit and see where it very plainly says section 504 is unconstitutional,” Ankeny community member and activist Amber Gustafson said. ”But the fact that the attorney general’s office would stand and say, no, no, that’s not what this means and expect Iowans to believe her is perhaps most frightening of all.”

Like many other bills and lawsuits that are occurring right now, transgender people are at the forefront. In this case the disability community is being pulled in. Brett Johnson, a University of Iowa professor and licensed attorney explained how in cases like this there is usually a relatively small ask and then a big ask.

“The small ask is the Biden administration’s interpretation of section 504 regarding gender dysphoria. So this would be a way for the anti-trans rights movement to get a win in court,” Johnson said. “The big ask is to declare the whole law, the whole scheme, unconstitutional. It’s unclear whether the Supreme Court will go that far, but the thought is, it’s most likely that the plaintiffs here will get the small win. So that’s almost certain, given this current court.”

Section 504 protects people’s equal access to federally funded programs and organizations, including education. Section 504 protects students with learning disabilities as well as physical disabilities and all student 504 plans are individual and created as a team between the school, the parent, and the student.

“It’s pretty wide reaching, and those accommodations help to level that playing field and prevent or promote access to their core. And I would be really sad if we didn’t have that access,” Nancy Lehman, Ankeny Community School District (ACSD), director of special programs said. “I think as a school system, we would continue to do the right thing by kids. I know we would do the right thing by kids.”

Rehabilitation Act of 1973

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 states that people with disabilities should not be discriminated against or excluded from participating, on the basis of their disability in any program or activity receiving federal financial assistance. 

“504 covers a whole gamut of [things], making sure that that government buildings are accessible, making sure that public transportation is accessible,  making sure that things that are funded by the public good, by taxes, are accessible to everyone who pays taxes, including people with disabilities,” Gustafson said.

Some people may wonder how this will affect the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA). The key difference between Section 504 and ADA is that ADA applies to any public entity while Section 504 applies to programs or activities receiving federal funding.

“People don’t understand that at the edge of a sidewalk, how it has the rumble strips, or how the curbs are all level, when I grew up that wasn’t the case because until ADA kicked in the Americans Disability Act, it didn’t make it accessible for everyone to have access,” Ankeny High School Assistant Principal Seith Monahan said.

What the lawsuit is saying

The lawsuit claims that the federal government is violating the spending clause with Section 504. The complaint states in Count 3 point 227, Section 504 violates principles of clear notice, relatedness, and anti-coercion. Another unfunded mandate was accused of this in 1984.

With the National Minimum Drinking Age Act of 1984, Congress said that if states did not raise their drinking age to 21 the federal government would withhold money that could be used to improve roads and highways.

Johnson explained how some states said this was coercive and tried to challenge it but Congress was comfortable with the act because,  “there’s some connection between Congress’s goal, which is, road safety,” Johnson said. “Withholding funds for road improvement is close enough of a connection that what Congress is doing is legitimate.”

The lawsuit also claims that states did not have enough notice to truly understand what they would have to do.

“I didn’t quite grasp that as much,” Johnson said. “[The argument is that] it was kind of sprung on the states, like the states didn’t have due notice, so the states didn’t know what they were agreeing to do until it was too late. And so I don’t know that argument seems kind of rich given that we’ve had the law in place for 50 years.”

Reportedly, some people are concerned that if the courts rule in favor of this lawsuit and the plaintiffs win it may set a precedent for other disability or civil rights laws to be challenged on the same basis.

“What’s at odds in this lawsuit is that these states are saying, one, we want to be able to take federal money and discriminate against people. That’s number one. And number two, we don’t think that you should be able to use federal money as a way to get people to follow disability laws,” Gustafson said. “And that is really scary because it does put everything into jeopardy like, 504, ADA, and Title Nine.”

What does section 504 do for students?

Section 504 covers a wide range of disabilities which can be accompanied by many forms of accommodations.

“If there’s a physical or mobility impairment, we’re going to have an accommodation that helps to promote the ease of mobility throughout the building,” Lehman said. “[That] could be an alternate passing time so a student can get from point A to point B without having to worry about impact or falling down. Or it could be that we provide a specialized chair or seating to accommodate their physical disability.”

According to the Iowa Department of Education, Child Find, is an Iowa policy that states all children with disabilities up to 21 in need of special education services or related services need to be identified, located, and evaluated. 

“When [Child Find] occurs, either parent initiated or school initiated, there’s a consent for evaluation. So we would talk to the family about what 504 is and isn’t, and ask permission to dig and do a little data analysis,” Lehman said. “It’s a scripted process, and it’s a database process, and it is a team decision.”

Lehman further explained how when people are not careful when using data, they can be throwing a lot at a student without the impact. She also added that as students age it is important to listen to them because they know themselves best. She does not want students to feel as if adults are doing something to them but with them.

“Every year we meet the counselor, the parents, the student, and admin meet just to make sure that [the accommodations are] appropriate for where that student is currently at because something might have made sense at South View, but now that they’re over here [at AHS], it doesn’t make as much sense in our building,” Monahan said. “We always want to be proactive and have the supports they need.”

Students require all different types of accommodations to provide them equal access to education, and reportedly most of them do not require a lot of financial support.

“Many of the accommodations that are written require no financial obligation, just structures, routines, and supports in place for kids,” Lehman said. “There are some exceptions to that when we talk about sometimes a hearing impairment or mobility issue with transportation or whatever those might be, those do have a cost associated with them, and that’s okay. That’s what the kids need to access education.”

Community concerns over section 504

Most people can agree that quality education is highly important for student success in school as well as once they graduate. Especially in Ankeny, most people seem to be willing to support equal education for all students.

“Giving a kid an extra 15 minutes for a test really doesn’t cost anybody anything, but some 504 plans do require an outlay of cost, and so that’s really where the rubber meets the road with these types of things,” Gustafson said. “Because  if a school isn’t required to, will they continue to honor?” 

Many people believe the United States is experiencing significant political division, with tensions evident at every turn. However, it’s uncommon for the disability rights community to be urged to pick a side in these debates. This community includes a diverse range of political views, as anyone—regardless of being a Republican or Democrat—can be connected to disability rights.

“What this lawsuit is attempting to do is to drive a wedge into that block,” Johnson said. “Those in that block who might otherwise care for other disabilities, yet are very anti-trans would say, ‘Oh, sure, I’ll go along with this. Anything to get rid of this Biden administration policy on gender dysphoria.’”

Recently, in the Iowa legislature many bills have passed removing transgender peoples’ rights, and the surface level reasoning for wanting this lawsuit, Texas v. Becerra, is that Section 504 was updated to include gender dysphoria as a disability.

“The whole thing’s always been an attack on transgender people, and if they can take out people with disabilities as collateral damage, I think they’re fine with that,” Gustafson said.

Depending on how this lawsuit is handled may determine the direction the court will head on other policies similar. Johnson explained how, “from a legal standpoint, it really is kind of fascinating to see how this current court considers things like precedent.” 

The plaintiffs may be relying on the possibility that the current court will not prioritize legal precedent.

“I think the states definitely want to get rid of the gender dysphoria thing. I think [the] political culture among the leadership in these states is such that is what they want to get rid of most when it comes to the whole part of declaring the entirety of the law unconstitutional,” Johnson said. “I don’t think they’re doing it because they want to get rid of helping people with disabilities, at least I’m hoping not, that sounds pretty callous.”

Johnson continued on how there is also an underlying reason for what could happen next if the plaintiffs win.

“My guess is that they’re doing this for more of a constitutional win,” Johnson said. “It’s a bigger issue where they’re saying, we don’t think we want to limit federal power over the states, and this would be one way to roll this back. The interpretation of how Congress can use its power of the purse is taxing and spending power over the states. So I think that’s the end game here.”

Community reaction

Seemingly, Iowa is historically welcoming and inclusive of the disability community, and some citizens may have been caught off guard by Iowa being a plaintiff in this lawsuit.

“I don’t think that most Iowans would support this at all,” Iowa House representative Heather Matson said. “I think that, unfortunately, what tends to happen is that something comes up, but most people are just busy living their lives, and if they don’t see it impacting their own everyday life, then they are less likely to pay attention to it.”

Gustafson and other citizens reached out to Attorney General Bird at the Capitol to deliver her 30 letters from parents with students on a 504 plan as well as letters written by students themselves. Gustafson described how when people call and they mention Texas v. Becerra or Section 504, they are immediately put on voicemail. Although, General Bird has released some public statements.

“If I say this generously, [Bird] either didn’t know what the lawsuit did, or she was choosing not to be completely forthright about it,” Matson said. “So I generally recommend that folks introduce themselves to their legislators and start to build a relationship with them, regardless of whether or not they are the same political party or agree with them on any particular issue, because the more you build those relationships, the more likely you are to get a response when you have questions.”

District 41 representative Ryan Weldon was requested for comment, but was unavailable.

Everyone seems to bring their own perspective to an issue or situation and some may have better quality conversations when they go in with an open mind.

“We all kind of bring our own perspective and how we experience things to any situation, and being able to really sit and talk and understand another student’s perspective for school that’s different than your own is really enlightening and eye opening,” Lehman said. “So when we can see that perspective, then we can also be that catalyst for change, so that all people can have an experience that’s first equitable and then hopefully positive.”

In the current political climate some people may feel that every day there is a new bill or law that passes without their notice and they may feel that it is impossible to keep up with everything.

“Find the organizations that match up in some way with the issues that you are most interested in, and then get on their newsletter list. Get on all of their social media,” Matson said. “Because especially during the [legislative] session, there will be so many updates that it’ll help you stay informed on it.” 

For more information related to Section 504 individuals can access resources from disability rights organizations such the Disability Rights Education and Defense Fund (DREDF). Additionally, the full text of relevant legislation can be found on government websites.

“You need to read the whole [lawsuit] to understand the depth of the concern, if you only read the first part or the last part, you’re missing the whole story,” Lehman said. “So becoming informed regarding the political narrative and landscape would be important, and then making your own decision based upon that.”

Any piece of legislation will have an effect on people, the impact or importance of that effect is up to each individual.

“I’m hopeful that we don’t put kids in the center of an adult debate,” Lehman said. “I’m hoping that we do the right thing and continue to support kids. I don’t have any doubt that, regardless of the outcome [that our] community [and] schools will come up with a plan to support kids and meet their needs.”

This story was originally published on The Talon on March 7, 2025.