Funding Pause Jeopardizes Critical Programs for Migrant Children, English Learners, Low-Income Students, and Adult Learners Across New York and the Nation
NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James and 22 other attorneys general, as well as the governors of Pennsylvania and Kentucky, today sued the Trump administration for illegally freezing nearly $7 billion dollars in critical education funding. On June 30, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) abruptly halted funds appropriated by Congress for six longstanding education programs, jeopardizing programs that provide after-school care for children of working parents, teach English to children who are non-native speakers, recruit and train teachers, expand STEM and arts curricula, and provide bullying and suicide prevention services in schools. The attorneys general are asking the court to stop the unconstitutional freeze, which has thrown schools nationwide into chaos, and compel the administration to release the billions of dollars in frozen funds that support some of the country’s most vulnerable children and their families.
“The federal government cannot use our children’s classrooms to advance its assault on immigrant and working families,” said Attorney General James. “This illegal and unjustified funding freeze will be devastating for students and families nationwide, especially for those who rely on these programs for childcare or to learn English. Congress allocated these funds, and the law requires that they be delivered. We will not allow this administration to rewrite the rules to punish the communities it doesn’t like.”
For decades, Congress has required the federal government to release this education funding to states by July 1 to ensure schools receive resources ahead of the new academic year. These funds are distributed through formula grants, meaning ED has a legal obligation to allocate them according to a set formula established by Congress. This year, however, just hours before the statutory deadline, the administration abruptly informed states that the funds would not be coming. ED announced a blanket freeze on six programs, including:
- The Migrant Education Program, which was created by Congress in response to the 1960 documentary Harvest of Shame to support the education of migrant farm workers and their children.
- Title II-A, which supports recruitment, training, and retention of effective teachers and school leaders, particularly in low-income and underserved communities.
- Title III-A, which provides English learners and immigrant students with the tools they need to attain English proficiency and meet state academic standards.
- Title IV-A, which supports student well-being and academic enrichment through services like school-based mental health care, violence, bullying, and suicide prevention, arts and STEM education, and college and career guidance.
- Title IV-B, known as the 21st Century Community Learning Centers Program, which funds after-school and summer programs, tutoring, mentoring, and expanded literacy services.
- Adult Education Grants, which help adults build literacy and job-readiness skills, including civics education for English learners.
Together, these programs have provided vital educational support to millions of students and families nationwide for decades. Despite this history, the administration provided no legal justification for the freeze. On June 30, just hours before the funds were set to be distributed, ED sent states a vague, three-sentence email claiming that a “review” was underway to align funding with “the president’s priorities.” No details were provided on the duration or scope of the review. In the following days, OMB attempted to justify the freeze by claiming the funding had been used to “subsidize a radical leftwing agenda,” specifically accusing New York of using federal education funds to “promote illegal immigrant advocacy organizations,” which is patently false. OMB also raised objections to the use of funds for scholarships for immigrant students and lessons on LGBTQ+ topics.
This sweeping funding freeze has already caused chaos for school systems. Essential summer school and after-school programs, which provide childcare for working families, have been canceled or are at risk. Professional development for teachers and support for English learners are being halted or scaled back. With the school year weeks away, districts have been left scrambling. Most critically, states have had no time to fill the massive fiscal hole left by the sudden cutoff. Budgets have been finalized, staff hired, and contracts signed based on a decades-long expectation that this funding would arrive on July 1. Now, many states and school districts face the prospect of breaking contracts and slashing programming they can no longer afford.
In New York, more than $463 million in funding for the 2025-2026 school year has been frozen, 13 percent of the state’s total K-12 education funding. This includes more than $125 million for teacher training and development, $107 million to create safe and effective learning environments for New York students, $102 million for after-school and summer programs, $65 million to fund English learning and literacy initiatives, $10 million to support migrant students, and $52 million in adult literacy funding. The majority of this funding goes to 730 school districts across New York, which are now scrambling to address the budget shortfall.
Already, some summer programs have been shuttered, meaning thousands of children are missing out on academic and enrichment programming, as well as midday meals. With these programs closed, many New York families have abruptly lost their childcare for the summer, and if the funding is not released by September, the number of families suddenly left without childcare will grow exponentially. The New York State Education Department (NYSED) estimates at least 65,000 low-income New York students could lose access to afterschool or summer enrichment programs and 80,000 New Yorkers could be cut off from adult education and literacy services.
In New York City, where 44 percent of public school students speak a language other than English at home, this freeze threatens essential English language instruction and literacy services. At the state level, the frozen funds cover the salaries and benefits of 67 full time employees. If the funding freeze continues, NYSED would be forced to conduct “large scale and unplanned layoffs,” which would have damaging reverberations across the state workforce, as well as disastrous impacts for local school districts.
Attorney General James and the coalition argue that this funding freeze violates the Constitution and federal law. The administration offered no reasoned explanation for a drastic policy reversal and failed to consider the states’ reliance on long-established funding processes, in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act. The freeze also violates the Constitution’s spending clause and separation of powers principle, because the administration has disregarded Congress’ sole power of the purse and exceeded its authority by attempting to conduct a discretionary “review” of programs established, funded, and regulated by Congress. In addition, the Impoundment Control Act prohibits the executive branch from unilaterally refusing to spend appropriated funds unless specific procedures are followed. Those procedures were not followed here.
The attorneys general highlight that this is not the first time the Trump administration has unlawfully attempted to block funds allocated by Congress. Federal courts across the country have repeatedly struck down similar overreaches targeting various educational and health initiatives. As those courts have affirmed, the president cannot defy the will of Congress.
Attorney General James and the coalition are asking the court to declare the funding freeze illegal and permanently block the action. They will be seeking a preliminary injunction covering all plaintiff states and are asking for a writ of mandamus to compel the administration to distribute the funds that Congress appropriated for school systems.
Joining Attorney General James in filing the lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia, as well as the governors of Pennsylvania and Kentucky.
