Two states join suit against Obama transgender bathroom plan

A new sticker designates a gender neutral bathroom at Nathan Hale High School in Seattle. President Obama's directive ordering schools to accommodate transgender students has been controversial in some places, but since 2012 Seattle has mandated that transgender students be able to use of the bathrooms and locker rooms of their choice. Nearly half of the district's 15 high schools already have gender neutral bathrooms and one high school has had a transgender bathroom for 20 years. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)

By Associated Press July 6, 2016 1 min read

AUSTIN, Texas – Two states have joined the 11-state coalition Texas is leading in a lawsuit challenging the legality of the Obama administration’s recent directive about transgender students in public schools.

In a court pleading filed Wednesday in Wichita Falls, Texas, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton also seeks a preliminary injunction to halt implementation of the directive pending a final judgment in the lawsuit.

Kentucky and Mississippi joined the coalition challenging the directive to let transgender students use the bathrooms and locker rooms that match their gender identity. The coalition also includes Oklahoma, Alabama, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Tennessee, Maine, Louisiana, Utah, Arizona and Georgia. Conservative-led states had vowed defiance since the Justice Department handed down the guidance.

The parties ask for a hearing on the injunction motion on Aug. 8 or 9.