New York Attorney General Letitia James today led a coalition of 20 other attorneys general in filing a motion for a preliminary injunction as part of their lawsuit to stop the dismantling of the Department of Education (ED). On March 13, Attorney General James and the coalition filed their lawsuit after the Trump administration announced plans to eliminate 50 percent of the Department’s workforce. Following a March 20 Executive Order directing the closure of ED and President Trump’s March 21 announcement that, in addition to implementing layoffs, the Department must “immediately” transfer student loan management and special education services outside of the Department, Attorney General James and the coalition are seeking a court order to immediately stop the mass layoffs and transfer of services.
“The Trump administration’s illegal cuts to the Department of Education are an attack on our educators, our schools, and our students,” said Attorney General James. “We sued to stop Trump from dismantling the Department of Education, and today we are seeking a court order to protect students and their families. As a proud product of New York public schools, I will continue to defend our schools and all those who depend on them.”
As Attorney General James and the coalition assert, the Trump administration’s attacks on ED have already had serious consequences for families and students throughout the country. Mass layoffs of ED staff have led to the closure of the Department’s Office of Civil Rights locations throughout the country, including in New York. Critical funding for state school systems has also been delayed. $363 million in federal funds for the New York State Education Department have been delayed due to layoffs and other changes the Trump administration has made at ED. As Attorney General James and the coalition argue, states rely on billions of dollars every year in funding for elementary and secondary education, services for children with disabilities, vocational education, adult education, and other crucial services. All of these programs will be severely disrupted if the administration’s incapacitation of the Department is not stopped.
Attorney General James and the coalition argue in their lawsuit and motion for a preliminary injunction that the Trump administration’s attacks on ED are illegal and unconstitutional. The Department is an executive agency authorized by Congress, with numerous laws creating its various programs and funding streams. The coalition’s lawsuit asserts that the executive branch does not have the legal authority to unilaterally dismantle it without an act of Congress. In addition, Attorney General James and the coalition argue that ED’s mass layoffs violate the Administrative Procedures Act.
Joining Attorney General James in filing the lawsuit and today’s motion are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, Wisconsin, Vermont, and the District of Columbia.
This is the latest action Attorney General James has taken to protect New Yorkers and the services they rely on from the Trump administration’s illegal attacks. On March 6, Attorney General James and a coalition of attorneys general sued the Trump administration for illegal mass firings of federal employees and sued the Trump administration for cutting critical grant programs for teachers through the Department of Education. Also on March 6, Attorney General James led a coalition of attorneys general in securing a court order blocking the Trump administration’s freeze of essential federal funds to states. On March 5, Attorney General James and a coalition of attorneys general secured a court order stopping the Trump administration from withholding vital funding to the National Institutes of Health. On February 24, Attorney General James led a coalition of attorneys general in securing a court order preventing Elon Musk and members of DOGE from accessing Americans’ private information through the U.S. Treasury