A federal judge temporarily blocked the Education Department from enforcing a deadline requiring public colleges in 17 states to submit admissions data broken down by race and sex. The court found the collection generally within legal authority but faulted the rushed timeline under the Administrative Procedure Act. The decision extends the pause for some institutions pending a hearing on whether additional plaintiffs can join the case. The underlying effort traces to a directive calling for new admissions data collection intended to test compliance with the 2023 Supreme Court ruling striking down race-conscious admissions. For universities, the ruling alters compliance planning for data workflows tied to the National Center for Education Statistics and could delay reporting requirements that affect institutional accountability and risk assessments.