Attorney General Ellison joins 22 states in suing to stop Trump Administration from withholding essential federal funding
New Trump Administration policy would block trillions in funding for health, education, law enforcement, disaster relief, and other essential state programs
January 28, 2025 (SAINT PAUL) – Attorney General Ellison today joined a coalition of 22 attorneys general suing to stop the implementation of a new Trump administration policy that orders the withholding of trillions of dollars in funding that every state in the country relies on to provide essential services to millions of Americans. The new policy, issued by the President’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB), puts an indefinite pause on the majority of federal assistance to states. The policy would immediately jeopardize state programs that provide critical health and childcare services to families in need, deliver support to public schools, combat hate crimes and violence against women, provide life-saving disaster relief to states, and more. Attorney General Ellison and the coalition of attorneys general are seeking a court order to immediately stop the enforcement of the OMB policy and preserve essential funding.
“My mission is to help Minnesotans afford their lives and live with dignity, safety, and respect, and this illegal order from President Trump is a threat to the well-being of Minnesotans everywhere,” said Attorney General Ellison. “This will gut core government services supporting our schools, health care system, law enforcement agencies, and so much more that Minnesotans rely on and pay taxes for. I will not stand back and allow Trump to break the law and inflict serious harm on people. If allowed to stand, Trump’s order is also a threat to the Constitution. Congress passed laws directing federal funds, and no President can undo laws passed by diktat. Today, I am suing Donald Trump to halt this illegal order and stand up for Minnesotans across our state.”
The OMB policy, issued late on January 27, directs all federal agencies to indefinitely pause the majority of federal assistance funding and loans to states and other entities beginning at 5:00 pm today, January 28. As Attorney General Ellison and the coalition note in their lawsuit, OMB’s policy has caused immediate chaos and uncertainty for millions of Americans who rely on state programs that receive these federal funds. Essential community health centers, addiction and mental health treatment programs, services for people with disabilities, and other critical health services are jeopardized by OMB’s policy.
Attorney General Ellison and the coalition also argue that jeopardizing state funds will put Americans in danger by depriving law enforcement of much-needed resources. OMB’s policy would pause support for the U.S. Department of Justice's initiatives to combat hate crimes and violence against women, support community policing, and provide services to victims of crimes. In addition, Attorney General Ellison and the coalition of attorneys general note that the OMB policy would halt essential disaster relief funds to places like California and North Carolina, where tens of thousands of residents are relying on FEMA grants to rebuild their lives after devastating wildfires and floods.
While the administration has attempted to clarify the scope and meaning of the OMB policy, states have already reported that funds have been frozen, jeopardizing services like Medicaid across the country. As part of their lawsuit, Attorney General Ellison and the coalition of attorneys general argue that OMB’s policy violates the Constitution and the Administrative Procedure Act by imposing a government-wide stop to spending without any regard for the laws and regulations that govern each source of federal funding. The attorneys general argue that the president cannot decide to unilaterally override laws governing federal spending, and that OMB’s policy unconstitutionally overrides Congress’s power to decide how federal funds are spent.
This lawsuit was led by the attorneys general of New York, California, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Rhode Island. Joining the lawsuit in addition to Attorney General Ellison are the attorneys general of Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.
