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More than 20 Democratic lawyers announced Monday they are suing the Trump administration over the sudden decision to withhold about $6.8 billion in spending on the K-12 program, explaining the freeze is unconstitutional and “debilitating” the state a few weeks before the new school year.
The lawsuit, released by California Attorney General Rob Bonta, comes weeks after the Department of Education announced on June 30 that it would suspend distributions of federally approved grants, which will be approved by Congress and will be distributed on July 1st a day later.
“The department remains committed to ensuring that taxpayer resources are spent in accordance with the president’s priorities and the department’s statutory responsibility,” the department directed the administration and budget offices in a statement.
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Linda McMahon testifies at a confirmation hearing of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pension Committee on February 13, 2025 (Win McNamee/Getty Images)
The department did not immediately give a reason for a suspension.
Speaking to reporters in a call Monday, the Democratic Attorney General of California, Rhode Island, Massachusetts and Colorado highlighted the myriad ways that education freezes inject disruption and uncertainty in public schools across the country, maintaining critical budget decisions for public school educators, hiring staff and focusing on preparing for the future.
Bonta argued that the freeze was already a “devastating blow” for the state’s learning programs, including several immigration education centres and individualized tutoring and adult literacy programs.
“It’s merciless, illegal, it can’t be checked, and I won’t do that,” he said.
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Gov. Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta will speak at Gemperle Orchard on April 16, 2025 in Ceres, California. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
They noted that some statewide education programs have already been forced to shut down completely due to loss of funds, and education officials are citing the uncertainty facing public schools in the long term.
Just as public schools compete to adjust their budgets, “thoughtful, strategic budgets, staffing plans and contracts depend on the balance,” Bonta said.
The group claimed it was the latest in a series of unconstitutional efforts by the Trump administration to withhold federal funds approved by Congress and withhold federal funds that are outside the scope of the administration.
Federal funding includes approximately $2 billion in grants to fund ongoing development and education programs for teachers. Millions of dollars for personalized tutoring programs. $1 billion for academic enrichment grants for STEM and accelerated learning programs. hundreds of millions of dollars to fund adult literacy programs across the country.
Other programs, such as the 21st Century Community Learning Center, will pour funds into the state to fund approximately 10,000 after-school and summer school programs for students across the country.
State leaders on Monday argued that the freeze ordered by the education department was illegal and puts close and long-term harm to students and educators.
“President Trump and Department of Education Linda McMahon have caused a debilitating blow to the schools and threw them into chaos a few weeks before the school’s first day,” Bonta said.
More broadly, the Attorney General also argues that Trump’s spending freeze violates the Constitution and Water Storage Control Act.
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November 18, 2024, Washington Department of Education Building (Jose Luis Magana/AP)
The lawsuit comes as a democratically-led state filed gusts of winds from others that aimed to blunt Trump’s executive order and act in the first six months of his second term.
So far, as Bonta said Monday, the Democratic Attorney General has filed 31 lawsuits against the Trump administration in 25 weeks since he took office. The eight lawsuits focus on reducing educational programs.
On Monday, Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronya likened the rapid freeze in public education funding to a popular children’s cartoon.
“When the president takes away football from us like Lucy in Charlie Brown’s cartoon, it’s impossible for the state to effectively budget for future grades through the Department of Education, through our Department of Education, through our Department of Education, through our Department of Education, through our Department of Education,” Neronya said.
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“So when this happens, like it happened before, we’re going to bring about action and frankly, we’re going to win.”
Breanne Deppisch is a national political reporter for Fox News Digital, covering the Trump administration, focusing on the Department of Justice, the FBI and other national news.
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