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Florida AG Uthmeier threatened legal action against Irish dance organizations to force exclusion of transgender girl from girls' competition

On June 26, 2026, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier sent a letter to An Coimisiún Le Rincí Gaelacha (CLRG) and the Irish Dance Teachers' Association of North America (IDTANA) threatening legal action unless the organizations excluded a transgender girl from girls' divisions at the upcoming North American Irish Dance Championships in Orlando. Uthmeier cited Florida's public-accommodation sex-discrimination protections and the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act, demanding written compliance by June 30 or his office would take enforcement action. CLRG and IDTANA both permit competitors to enter divisions consistent with their gender identity.

Jurisdiction
state
Location
Tallahassee, Florida

Abuses documented

Actors

  • James Uthmeier (Florida Attorney General)

On June 26, 2026, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier sent a letter to An Coimisiún Le Rincí Gaelacha (CLRG) and the Irish Dance Teachers' Association of North America (IDTANA) demanding that the organizations exclude a transgender girl from the girls' divisions at the North American Irish Dance Championships in Orlando, scheduled for July 2–7, 2026 at the Rosen Centre Hotel.

Uthmeier's letter cited Florida's public-accommodation sex-discrimination protections and the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act, arguing that allowing transgender competitors in women's categories could constitute a deceptive trade practice. He set a compliance deadline of June 30 and stated: "My office will not tolerate these sorts of policies and will take all necessary steps to safeguard the rights and interests of Florida's female competitors." CLRG and IDTANA both maintain policies permitting competitors to enter divisions consistent with their gender identity. Florida's 2021 Fairness in Women's Sports Act — the statute most commonly invoked in such disputes — expressly covers public schools and postsecondary institutions, not private competitions held at commercial hotels.

The letter was the second political or legal pressure applied to the organizations within days. U.S. Representatives Randy Fine and Greg Steube, both Florida Republicans, had sent a letter on June 24 urging CLRG and IDTANA to limit girls' divisions to biological girls. Their letter carried no enforcement authority; Uthmeier's carried the full weight of Florida's enforcement apparatus. Uthmeier posted the letter publicly on social media.

Why we recorded this

Florida's Attorney General used state enforcement authority to pressure a private international organization into excluding a transgender competitor from its own women's categories. The threat wielded consumer-protection law as a novel enforcement lever — extending state power into private sporting competitions at a hotel, well beyond the scope of Florida's sports-fairness laws, which expressly cover public schools and universities. This records a state government official using the apparatus of law enforcement to override the inclusive membership policies of a private organization.

Sources

  1. Florida congressmen target transgender girl competing in Irish dance championship — The Advocate primary accessed June 29, 2026
  2. After Fine, Stuebe letter, Florida AG threatens legal action over Irish dance groups' transgender policy — Florida's Voice secondary accessed June 29, 2026

See also