The attorneys general of Rhode Island and Massachusetts are among the plaintiffs charging that a Trump administration freeze on more than $6 billion in education funding is illegal.
Without a detailed explanation, the U.S. Education Department on July 1 blocked the release of $6.8 billion in education grants for states.
Twenty-three attorneys general and the governors of Kentucky and Massachusetts are plaintiffs in the lawsuit.
Rhode Island’s Peter Neronha and Massachusetts’ Andrea Campbell were among four attorneys general taking part in a virtual news conference to announce the lawsuit Monday.
About $30 million is on the line for Rhode Island, and $100 million for Massachusetts, for a variety of educational programs.
Neronha said the funding freeze is illegal since the Trump administration is usurping the authority of Congress to make funding decisions.
“The money that we as Americans send to Washington to be directed to protect us, to support us — only Congress can decide precisely how that money is spent,” he said. “It’s the president’s job to faithfully execute the law, including the spending laws, the budgets, passed by Congress.”
With the school year fast approaching, and state education departments scrambling to respond, Neronha said he hopes an injunction will free the money in a matter of days or weeks, rather than months.
Campbell said students, schools, and communities will suffer if the latest funding freeze goes unchecked.
“The administration has proven yet again that it does not care about the well-being of our kids,” she said, “or the educators that are providing these services and working so incredibly hard. We’re sadly just a few weeks away from the start of the new school year and this chaos and confusion doesn’t help to ensure that there’s a smooth transition for everybody.”
