The United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island, in State of New York v. Trump, has issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) halting the freeze on federal funding from the Trump administration.  You can read the court order here: Court Order for TRO Halting Federal Funding Freeze.  You can read the New York State Attorney General's announcement below.

Attorney General James and Multistate Coalition Block Trump Administration from Freezing Essential Federal Funding

New York Attorney General Letitia James today released the following statement after a court granted a motion filed by her 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:

“This administration’s reckless plan to block federal funding has already caused chaos, confusion, and conflict throughout our country.  In the short time since this policy was announced, families have been cut off from childcare services, essential Medicaid funds were disrupted, and critical law enforcement efforts were put in jeopardy.  I led a coalition of attorneys general in suing to stop this cruel policy, and today we won a court order to stop it.  The President cannot unilaterally halt congressional spending commitments.  I will continue to fight against these illegal cuts and protect essential services that New Yorkers and millions of Americans across the country depend on.”

Today, the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island granted Attorney General James and 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, as initially articulated 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 James and attorneys general from 22 other states sued to immediately stop the enforcement of this policy and preserve trillions of dollars in essential funding.

While the administration has rescinded the memo announcing the policy, states and organizations that receive federal funding continue to be at risk for major disruptions.  Following the first announcement of the policy, Medicaid funds in New York and multiple other states were frozen.  Head Start programs across the country were cut off from funds, leading some childcare centers to close.  In Syracuse, a community health center serving low-income communities announced plans to borrow funding to meet payroll and warned it would close within weeks if the policy was implemented.  The chaos continues.

The lawsuit was led by Attorney General James and the attorneys general of California, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Rhode Island.  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.