Jeffco Public Schools in Colorado files lawsuit against Department of Education over alleged Title IX violation

Jeffco Public Schools in Colorado has filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Education. The district says it is being asked to violate state law.

The Department of Education has threatened to withhold more than $50 million in federal funding and alleges Jefferson County officials are violating Title IX by allowing male students to participate on female sports teams and to share bathrooms and overnight accommodations.

In a statement published on Tuesday, Jefferson County says it is following state law, which bans discrimination against transgender students.

The district says it needs a judge to tell it how to move forward in order to avoid violating state or federal law.

Earlier this summer, Jeffco argued the federal investigation was based on flawed information.  In an "impasse letter" in June, the DOE claimed it found male students on the school's rosters for its female sports teams.

"A review of Jefferson County's athletic rosters found the district allowed male students to occupy roster spots on girls' sports teams, displacing girls from the athletic programs designed for female students," the DOE's letter stated. JeffCo says that assertion is completely inaccurate, and the males listed on those rosters were coaches, trainers, and mascots, not athletes.

The DOE's impasse letter also reasserted its claims that the district was allowing students of different genders, opposite sexes to stay in the same accommodations overnight, stating, "The District also had policies that would have allowed students as young as 11 years old to share overnight accommodations on school trips with members of the opposite sex."

CBS Colorado has reached out to the Department of Justice and the Department of Education to comment on the lawsuit and will update this story when we receive a response.