In a mostly symbolic move, California’s largest school district voted 3-2 in favor of a resolution that prevents transgender athletes from competing in high school sports. The Kern High School District is based in Bakersfield and serves over 40,000 students across 31 schools. The resolution seeks to adopt Title IX measures from the Trump administration, which bans transgender students from competing in designation of their gender identity rather than their biological sex. California law, however, requires California schools to uphold the rights of transgender students in school sports. “This is just a resolution. It’s symbolic, aligning the district with federal policy,” 23 ABC Political Analyst Ian Anderson said of the vote. “So at the moment, nothing will change. But this discussion is not going away — it’s not going to be contained only to the Kern High School District. All school districts with sports teams will eventually have to make a decision.” The District has also approved letters to state and federal officials on guidance for how to proceed.

While California under Governor Gavin Newsom has remained defiant against President Trump’s executive order against transgender athletes, the Trump administration has threatened to withhold federal funding from schools that do not follow the order. This leaves many California schools with the decision of either forfeiting federal funds or state funds. Newsom, who has somewhat waffled on his strong support for transgender athletes, has claimed his hands are tied by state law that was established by his predecessor in 2013. “CIF [California Interscholastic Federation] is an independent nonprofit that governs high school sports,” Newsom said in a statement about the vote. “The California Department of Education is a separate constitutional office. Neither is under the Governor’s authority. CIF and the CDE have stated they follow existing state law — a law that was passed in 2013 and signed by Governor Jerry Brown (not Newsom) and in line with 21 other states. For the law to change, the legislature would need to send the Governor a bill. They have not.”

Chino Valley Unified School District Board of Education President Sonja Shaw, who authored the resolution, spoke to Fox News about her decision to draft it. “I authored this resolution to be the voice of our communities — to stand with our girls and protect the truth that should’ve never been silenced. Boys are boys. Girls are girls. God made them beautiful just the way they are. It’s time to put fairness, truth, and common sense back into education,” she said. Derek Tisinger, a trustee for the district, spoke at the vote about the difficulties the district faces. “We’re being threatened to be sued on both sides [state and federal], so if we’re going to be sued, let’s be on the right side of this,” he said. The district faces a lawsuit from parents and teachers who demand the district support transgender students’ rights. Tisinger, however, said the decision is one of funding. “I don’t want to lose federal funding… So, for us, it’s critical that we have the federal funds to pay our wonderful teachers that we have and take care of our students. So, we shouldn’t be in a situation where we’re being blackmailed one way or the other.”