State by State · No law protecting girls’ sports
Washington, D.C. has no law protecting girls' sports, and its school athletic association lets males who identify as girls play on girls' teams.
The law in the District of Columbia
DC policy allows males on girls' teams
The law in detail, with sources
The law
No law. The DC State Athletic Association (DCSAA) handbook lets students compete under the gender they identify with; its director said, “We allow students to participate in sports under the gender in which they want to identify” (Washington Informer, 2021). The DC Human Rights Act bars gender-identity discrimination (same).
Who it covers
DCSAA high school sports (DC public, charter and member private schools).
Notes
Because DC is not a state, Congress has the final say over its laws: under the Home Rule Act, Congress keeps the power to legislate for DC directly and can block laws the DC Council passes (Congressional Research Service, Feb. 2026). No federal Title IX action against DC’s girls’ sports policy has been reported. The current (2025–26) DCSAA handbook text has not been confirmed.
In the nation’s capital
Washington is also where ICONS takes the fight for women’s sports to Congress, the Supreme Court and federal agencies. That work is about national law and policy, not DC’s own rules:
- September 23, 2026: ICONS co-founder Kim Jones testified before the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, and ICONS brought female athletes to a press conference on Capitol Hill afterward.
- January 13, 2026: ICONS rallied on the Supreme Court steps as the Court heard Little v. Hecox and West Virginia v. B.P.J., cases in which ICONS had filed briefs.
- ICONS has filed briefs at the Supreme Court and complaints with the U.S. Department of Education. See ICONS’ legal advocacy.