A federal judge blocked the U.S. Department of Education from enforcing key deadlines for a new higher-education survey that would require extensive applicant and enrollment data by race and sex. The preliminary injunction applies while litigation continues over the survey’s legality. U.S. District Judge F. Dennis Saylor’s order paused enforcement against members of six higher education associations and six private nonprofit colleges, covering roughly 178 additional institutions. The court also barred enforcement mechanisms such as fines and other penalties while the case proceeds. The judge pointed to burdens tied to completing the survey and the risk of enforcement consequences, including funding impacts, if institutions are deemed to have submitted inadequate data. The decision follows an earlier injunction covering public colleges in 17 largely Democratic states.