Mississippi school chief shelves transgender bathroom policy

(AP) — Under fire from the governor and many Republican legislators, the Mississippi Department of Education now says it won't follow new federal guidance on use of bathrooms and locker rooms by transgender students.

State Superintendent Carey Wright made the announcement Wednesday morning in a brief statement, saying the department would "follow the lead of state leadership" and take no action until the state Board of Education could discuss the situation.

Mississippi education officials had said Friday they would follow the guidance by federal authorities calling for transgender students to be treated consistently with their gender identity.

Wednesday, 27 Republican state senators among the GOP's 32-member supermajority sent a letter to Wright and the Board of Education calling for "swift and decisive action on this urgent matter."

"The federal government is, in effect, trying to blackmail our state by implying that funding for public schools will be withheld should we continue to recognize biological sex when setting safety and privacy policies for our schools," the senators wrote.