Virginia’s public colleges and universities don’t have the authority to ban discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity, according to letters sent to the schools from Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, according to the Washington Post.

“It is my advice that the law and public policy of the Commonwealth of Virginia prohibit a college or university from including ’sexual orientation,’ ‘gender identity,’ ‘gender expression,’ or like classification as a protected class within its non-discrimination policy absent specific authorization from the General Assembly,” Cuccinelli wrote.

It’s unclear what effect Cuccinelli’s letter will have, or what recourse he would have should individual schools ignore it.

The move comes weeks after Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell removed LGBT protections from a routine executive order that banned discrimination in state hiring.