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Gov. Pete Ricketts on Monday suggested that Nebraska public school leaders should ignore an Obama administration directive urging them to allow transgender students to use bathrooms matching their gender identities.

The policy pronouncement is "basically an opinion (that) does not have the authority of law," Ricketts said during his monthly statewide call-in radio broadcast.

Schools should "reject this bullying by the Obama administration," the governor said.

Ricketts' pronouncement followed on the heels of a resolution adopted by the Republican state convention on Saturday that encourages the Legislature to restrict the use of public restrooms based on biological gender at birth.

The administrative directive issued by the Department of Education and the Justice Department proposes guidelines to ensure that transgender students "enjoy a supportive and non-discriminatory school environment."

Ricketts said the Obama administration should concentrate more of its attention on "growing jobs and creating opportunities for American families."