JAY — The Regional School Unit 73 board voted Thursday to keep its transgender sports policy in place despite a pending civil rights lawsuit filed by the Maine Human Rights Commission.

The 9-4 vote means the district will continue to bar transgender students from sports teams and private spaces that align with their gender identities, and will prepare for a legal defense that critics warn could carry significant financial risk for local taxpayers.

Following the vote, the board entered executive session to receive legal advice from attorney Jack Baldacci of Steve Smith Trial Lawyers. A motion to hire the firm as legal counsel for the lawsuit passed.

The vote Thursday confirmed that Policy AC/DC, the transgender athlete policy adopted in August that recognizes just two genders, will remain in effect while litigation proceeds. RSU 73 will also shift legal representation from its longtime counsel at Drummond Woodsum to Steve Smith Trial Lawyers for the lawsuit.

The Maine Human Rights Commission has filed complaints against six school districts that have adopted similar policies. At least one of those districts, Baileyville, has already retained Steve Smith Trial Lawyers.

State Rep. Mike Soboleski, R-Phillips, addressed the board and urged them not to back down from the policy despite the lawsuit.

“Please don’t be bullied; that’s what is happening right now,” Soboleski said. “The Maine Human Rights Commission is trying to bully you. Please hold the line and stay on course.”

Soboleski said the U.S. Department of Justice recently requested the Maine Principals’ Association turn over two years of complete rosters of boys and girls sports teams. He said the request reflects concerns that “without consistent biologically based eligibility standards, female athletes may face unfair competition and potential safety risks.”

Soboleski argued that federal law should be followed. The law, in this case, is President Donald Trump’s executive order, titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” barring transgender women and girls from competing in female sports.

“Federal law supersedes state law under the supremacy clause of the United States Constitution,” he said. “The Maine Human Rights Act cannot override a federal mandate. If your counsel is advising you otherwise, I recommend you seek another opinion.”

He urged the board not to retreat.

“I am pleased to report that a number of Maine schools are moving in the right direction, realigning their athletic and instructional policies with federal Title IX standards and refocusing on core academics,” Soboleski said. He cited states including Idaho, Mississippi and Tennessee that have passed laws restricting transgender girls, whom he called “biological boys,” from participating in girls’ sports.

Board Chair Shari Ouellette told members that private legal funding is likely available through the Alliance Defending Freedom, a prominent conservative legal advocacy group offering to support districts that decline to follow state protections for transgender students.

“I’m 98% sure the funding will be available,” Ouellette said. She said the offer applies to all districts currently facing commission lawsuits and that she learned of the opportunity earlier that day, following a Zoom call with board members from multiple districts also facing lawsuits.

Board member Phoebe Pike questioned whether outside funding would cover the district’s full legal exposure.

“We cannot afford this risk,” Pike said, warning that prolonged litigation could threaten the district’s financial stability. “There are too many kids counting on us in this area. If we go into the red we will be forced to close and I’m not willing to risk our school closing.”

Ouellette said she thought the legal fund could fund the entire cost of battling the lawsuit but that there was no way to tell for certain at this point.

During public comments prior to the vote, speakers raised concerns about student safety, community standards and legal liability. One speaker cited statistics on suicidal tendencies among transgender and LGBTQ youth, saying the district’s policy “makes these students feel unwelcome.”

Resident and former board member Anne Weatherbee, of Jay, argued that the commission’s lawsuit is grounded in state civil rights protections and that the district knowingly put taxpayers at risk by passing a policy its own legal team advised against.

“It is state law we are in violation of,” Weatherbee said. “I am sad and disappointed but not surprised to find RSU 73 in the position it is in now. When school board members voted to violate state law, you were warned by your district’s attorneys, our superintendent, fellow board members and numerous community members that the policy would lead to a lawsuit.”

Weatherbee said the district would now be asking three towns — Livermore, Livermore Falls and Jay — to pay for additional legal defense.

“As a taxpayer whose property taxes have increased 59%, I feel that money could go to much better use than my town paying for more legal advice or to settle a lawsuit for violating state law. Not federal law,” Weatherbee said. “I do want to thank the board members who have been voices of reason and all the community members who have tried to help this board make decisions in the best interests of students and towns. And I hope that your common sense and compassion will prevail today. And I am not bullying.”

Livermore resident Linda Deane said the commission’s case is not political posturing.

“The Maine Human Rights Commission didn’t sue RSU 73 by accident or for bullying,” Deane said. “They sued because this board adopted a policy that violates Maine civil rights law. This is a civil rights violation.”

Early in the meeting, board members debated whether the public should even be allowed to comment before the vote. Board member Holly Morris had suggested limiting comments to two minutes and moving them to the end of the meeting, which was rejected.

Pike argued that restricting public comment before the vote would silence meaningful discussion.

“We have a policy in place that gives them three minutes,” Pike said. “If the public wishes to discuss the issue at hand, shouldn’t we hear what they have to say before the motion? If we put it at the end we don’t get to hear all the voices and that includes all the sides and any neutral discussion. I feel that is wildly inappropriate.”

Further public information on the district’s legal position, financial exposure and timeline is expected to develop over coming weeks.