Transportation Grants

On May 13, 2025, a coalition of attorneys general filed a lawsuit in Rhode Island against Department of Transportation (DOT) and DOT Secretary Sean Duffy to challenge a directive that requires all state and local governments to assist in federal immigration enforcement as a condition of obtaining DOT funds. Those funds include grants for highway construction, public transportation maintenance, and competitive funds for airport and railway improvement. We argue that imposing an immigration-enforcement condition on all federal transportation funds, which Congress appropriated to support critical infrastructure projects, is beyond the agency’s legal authority. 

California, et al v. USDOT