The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced Saturday that it is launching an investigation into the University of Maine’s Title IX compliance following President Donald Trump’s threats to pull federal funding from Maine and other states that allow transgender athletes to compete in women’s sports.

USDA acting general counsel Ralph Linden sent a letter Saturday to the University of Maine System, Gov. Janet Mills and the Office of the Maine Attorney General, accusing the state of “openly disregarding” Trump’s executive order barring transgender athletes assigned male at birth from competing on women’s teams.

“President Trump has made it abundantly clear: taxpayers’ hard-earned dollars will not support institutions that discriminate against women,” U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said in a news release. “USDA is committed to upholding the President’s executive order, meaning any institution that chooses to disregard it can count on losing future funding.”

The letter from the USDA states that, “As a land grant university, the University of Maine receives a significant amount of funding from USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). Active awards to the University of Maine from ARS and NIFA in recent years total over $100 million.” A university spokesperson said the USDA awarded $29.78 million to the University of Maine in fiscal year 2024.

The announcement came a day after the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights launched an investigation into the Maine Department of Education and School Administrative District 51, the district that was publicly criticized by a Republican Maine lawmaker for allowing a transgender student to compete in the girls indoor track state finals last week.

The federal education department announced investigations earlier this month into athletic associations in two other states — California and Minnesota — where it said the federal directive is also not being followed.

Both Mills and Attorney General Aaron Frey issued written statements Friday morning pledging to fight any attempt to cut off the state’s funding. “The State of Maine will not be intimidated by the President’s threats,” Mills said.

Mills and Trump got into a heated exchange during a gathering of governors at the White House on Friday after Trump threatened to cut off federal funding to Maine for its policy on transgender athletes.

Trump told the governors that the NCAA had complied with his executive order prohibiting men from participating in women’s sports and then asked if the governor of Maine was in attendance.

“Are you not going to comply with it?” Trump asked Mills.

“I’m complying with state and federal law,” Mills shot back.

“Well, we are the federal law,” Trump said. “You’d better do it. You’d better do it, because you’re not going to get any federal funding at all if you don’t.”

“See you in court,” Mills replied.

After the administration announced the investigations into the Maine Department of Education and SAD 51, Mills said the conflict was about more than the rights of transgender athletes.

“In America, the President is neither a King nor a dictator, as much as this one tries to act like it — and it is the rule of law that prevents him from being so,” Mills said in a written statement.

Trump signed an executive order earlier this month saying the federal government would deny federal funding to schools that allow transgender athletes assigned male at birth to compete on women’s teams. While the NCAA has since banned transgender athletes from competing, officials in Maine and more than 20 other states have not changed their policies allowing participation, saying Trump’s order does not override federal and state law.

In a statement Saturday night, UMaine System spokesperson Samantha Warren said the institution would comply with the review, and that UMaine complies with NCAA rules.

“The University of Maine System appreciates the media making us aware of the USDA’s letter, which recognizes our flagship’s record of success in securing funding from that agency but notably makes no allegations of any wrongdoing,” Warren said. “Maine’s public universities will continue to comply with all relevant State and Federal laws and cooperate with any compliance reviews to ensure postsecondary educational opportunities and high-impact research continue to benefit our students, the state and this nation.”