Georgia Joins 10 States in Lawsuit Over Federal Trans Bathroom Policies

ATLANTA, GA -- Georgia has joined 10 other states across the U.S. in a lawsuit against the Obama Administration's guidelines regarding transgender bathrooms on public school campuses.

Joining Georgia are Texas, Alabama, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Tennessee, Arizona, Maine,Oklahoma, Louisiana and Utah.

Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Justice and Department of Education sent letters to every public school district in the country, providing guidelines on how transgender students should be accommodated and threatening a loss of federal funds for schools that aren't in compliance.

"No student should ever have to go through the experience of feeling unwelcome at school or on a college campus,” U.S. Secretary of Education John B. King Jr. said in a statement.

“The guidance letter is yet another example of the President’s unconstitutional overreach," said Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens. "The Constitution gives only Congress the power to write and rewrite laws. Threatening to withhold taxpayer dollars from schools if they don’t comply with this new and legally unsound mandate is unconstitutional. I will continue to defend the Constitution on behalf of Georgians.”

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"In President Obama's final drive to fundamentally transform America, he has pushed aside the concerns of parents and schools, the privacy and safety of students, and ignored the boundaries of his constitutional power," said Family Research Council President Tony Perkins. ""If the White House can dictate the policies for every school locker room, shower, and bathroom in America, what could possibly be beyond its reach?

"We are also encouraged by the scores of state leaders who are standing up to the Obama administration's unilateral redefinition of federal law. It is now time for Republicans in Congress, who have the constitutional authority as a coequal branch of government, to support these state leaders and bring the imperial White House under control," Perkins said.

The letters came as several states have passed so-called "bathroom laws," some limiting and others opening up bathroom usage for individuals based on their birth sex or gender identity. In the most high-profile case, North Carolina and the Department of Justice have filed lawsuits against each other over the state's law that restricts bathroom and locker-room usage for transgender people.

Last month, Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed banned all city employees from traveling to North Carolina because of the state's controversial law.

Georgia House Speaker David Ralston -- one of the state's most influential politicians who also happens to represent Blue Ridge -- has sent a letter to U.S. Sens. Johnny Isakson and David Perdue. He argued that the federal government is overreaching its authority by threatening to withhold federal funding for schools that don't provide for transgender bathrooms.