HHS Pulls Funding From California Over Failure To Remove ‘Gender Ideology’ In Sex-Ed Program
The Trump administration has cut off more than $12 million in federal funding to California after the state refused to remove what officials called “egregious gender ideology” from its sex education curriculum.
The decision, announced Thursday by the Department of Health and Human Services’ Administration for Children and Families (ACF), halts all funding for California’s Personal Responsibility Education Program (PREP), which has been fully financed by federal grants. PREP targets youth ages 10–19 and promotes behavioral changes like delaying sexual activity, increasing condom use, and reducing sexual partners.
“California’s refusal to comply with federal law and remove egregious gender ideology from federally funded sex-ed materials is unacceptable,” said Acting Assistant Secretary Andrew Gradison in a press release. “Accountability is coming for every state that uses federal funds to teach children delusional gender ideology.”
Gradison emphasized the administration’s position during a Thursday appearance on Fox News, criticizing PREP materials for promoting gender transitions, hormone therapy, and language suggesting that “boys can be girls” and vice versa.
“The American people elected President Trump to restore sanity and common sense in this country,” Gradison stated. “Part of that is removing gender ideology from state sex-ed curriculum.”
White House Support and Executive Action
President Trump backed the move on Truth Social, threatening to pull funding from any school district nationwide that refuses to comply with HHS policy. “Any California school district that doesn’t adhere to our Transgender policies, will not be funded,” Trump posted. “Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
This comes on the heels of Trump’s recent executive order banning male athletes from competing in female sports and a broader push to dismantle what he calls “woke” educational programming.
HHS: California Defied Warnings
HHS said the funding cut follows months of failed negotiations. The ACF first requested PREP curriculum materials in March and issued a 60-day ultimatum in June requiring California to revise the program. State officials responded just before the deadline, refusing to make changes or acknowledge any “medical inaccuracies.”
In a statement Thursday, HHS accused California of using taxpayer funds to expose children to curriculum that encourages name changes, hormone therapy, and surgical gender alterations. “It instructed teachers to ‘remind students that some men are born with female anatomy,’” the release stated.
Previous grant disclosures show California’s PREP program received nearly $6 million in federal funds in fiscal year 2022 alone.
Legal and Political Backdrop
The funding pull reflects the Trump administration’s broader policy shift to crack down on state-level programs perceived as promoting radical gender theories. The White House has also launched litigation against California for allowing biological males to compete in girls’ sports, arguing it deprives young women of fair athletic opportunities.
The administration’s move is expected to trigger legal challenges from California and other Democrat-run states, setting up another high-profile fight over federal education policy and states’ rights heading into the 2026 election cycle.