Attorney General Neronha co-leads multistate coalition to block Trump Administration from freezing essential federal funding

Published on Friday, January 31, 2025

Attorney General Neronha today released the following statement after a Rhode Island court granted a motion filed by his office and a coalition of 22 other attorneys general to halt the implementation of a new Trump administration policy that would block federal agency grants, loans, and other financial assistance programs:

“I am grateful for Judge McConnell’s careful consideration of this matter and for seeing the irreparable harm that this directive would cause, and frankly has already caused, Americans across the country,” said Attorney General Neronha. “As we allege in our complaint, the Executive Branch does not have the authority to intercept crucially important federal funding that the Congress has already allocated to the states, and on which Americans rely. This directive targets public safety, health care, veterans’ services, childcare, disaster relief, and countless other cornerstones of American life. Make no mistake: this federal funding pause was implemented to inspire fear and chaos, and it was successful in that respect. These tactics are intended to wear us down, but with each legal victory we reaffirm that these significant and unlawful disruptions won’t be tolerated, and will certainly be met with swift and immediate action now and in the future.”

Today, the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island granted the coalition’s request for a temporary restraining order, halting the implementation of the administration’s policy. This temporary restraining order extends beyond the January 28 administrative stay granted by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in response to a lawsuit brought by nonprofit groups that receive federal funds. 

The proposed policy, issued by the President’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on January 27, would put an indefinite pause on the majority of federal assistance, jeopardizing funds for health care, education, law enforcement, disaster relief, infrastructure, and more. On January 28, Attorney General Neronha and 22 other attorneys general sued to immediately stop the enforcement of the OMB policy and preserve trillions of dollars in essential funding. 

While the administration has attempted to rescind the policy, states and organizations that receive federal funding continue to experience major disruptions. Following OMB’s issuance of the policy, Medicaid funds in multiple states were frozen. Head Start programs across the country were cut off from funds, leading some childcare centers to close. Despite the District Court for the District of Columbia’s stay, disruptions to critical funds are continuing across the country. 

The lawsuit was led by the attorneys general of Rhode Island, New York, California, Illinois, Massachusetts, and New Jersey. Joining the lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.

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