The US Department of Justice has filed what it calls a "first-of-its-kind" lawsuit against Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools (KCKPS), alleging the district's internal guidance for transgender and gender non-conforming pupils breached two federal parental rights laws by allowing "secret gender transitions" to be facilitated at school without parents being told. Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon said the case, filed on Tuesday, is the "first of many", confirming the DOJ is investigating other school districts and is prepared to bring further lawsuits without waiting for this case to conclude, though she declined to name which districts were under scrutiny.

The lawsuit centres on guidance KCKPS has reportedly used since 2017, under which pupils could ask for parents to be excluded from school planning meetings and for their transgender or gender non-conforming status to be withheld from them, with resulting plans covering names, pronouns, records, toilet and locker-room use, and sports participation. The DOJ argues this breaches the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) by denying parents access to their children's education records, and the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA) by allowing pupils to take part in meetings that reveal sensitive information without prior written parental consent. The Department of Education had opened a FERPA investigation into the district in August 2025 and warned it on 12 August that its guidance was unlawful; after KCKPS declined to change course voluntarily, the DOJ is now asking a federal court to declare the practices unlawful and block their enforcement. KCKPS has disputed the allegations, insisting it fully complies with FERPA and PPRA and saying it will respond through the court process.