Almost two months into the Trans Journalists Association and MuckRock’s partnership to document the impact of anti-trans federal action, we’ve filed 191 requests — more than doubling last month.
What we’ve been doing
We’ve requested records from every state multiple times and continue to file with federal agencies. Open requests include:
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Memos from multiple U.S. Department of Health and Human Services agencies telling employees they can only use full legal names in email signatures and cannot use pronouns or “nicknames.”
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An “Ending Indoctrination Strategy” plan from the the Secretaries of Education, Defense and Health and Human Services meant to “advise the President in formulating future policy” on K-12 education.
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A copy of the HHS Fiscal Year 2026 budget draft, which reportedly proposes cutting the 988 Suicide Prevention and Crisis Lifeline’s specialized services for LGBTQ+ youth.
How the government has responded
State governments have completed 42 of our requests.
A majority of these records are letters to the U.S. Department of Education outlining how state education agencies are complying with federal student privacy laws like the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act and the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment. These laws — and questions around how they should work — lie at the center of conversations and court cases around what information schools can share with parents about their children’s decisions to use new names and pronouns or request social services like mental health support.
We’ve also received 16 states’ Department of Corrections policies regarding transgender inmates. We expect more soon.
How you can help
We’re still collecting suggestions for which documents to FOIA. You can submit your ideas via Google Forms.
Like last month, state agencies are being more responsive than federal entities. For that reason, we’re especially interested in pursuing documents from state or local governments that relate to decisions they’ve made in response to federal action.
Suggestions related to arts, sports, business, and other areas that aren’t currently reflected in our requests are highly encouraged. We’d also like to learn more about HHS’ recent report on gender-related medical care for trans youth, and want to hear what you’d like to know about it as well.
