Attorney General Ellison wins court order restoring critical education funds to states

Court orders Trump administration to immediately restore access to over $1 billion nationally in funds that help schools, teachers, and vulnerable students recover from COVID-19

May 6, 2025 (SAINT PAUL) – Attorney General Ellison today secured a court order forcing the Trump administration to restore states’ access to critical Department of Education (ED) programs that support low-income and unhoused students and provide funding for other services to address the long-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on K-12 students. 

On April 10, Attorney General Ellison and a coalition of 15 other attorneys general and the Governor of Pennsylvania sued the Trump administration for unilaterally ending access to over $1 billion in grants from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), which ED had previously determined the states could access through March 2026. The preliminary injunction issued today by Judge Edgardo Ramos of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York orders ED to immediately restore states’ access to these critical funds as the case continues. 

"Time and time again, Donald Trump has tried to pull the rug out from under Minnesota," said Attorney General Ellison. "When Congress passed the American Rescue Plan, they invested resources in Minnesota classrooms to help students catch up on learning lost during the height of the pandemic. Trump's attempt to suddenly and unlawfully withdraw this funding is unlawful and unacceptable. I am pleased to have blocked this attack on our students for the duration of our lawsuit against the Trump administration."

To combat the long-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, ARPA funded three education-related programs to help support states’ school systems and direct more resources to the most vulnerable students. These three programs – Homeless Children and Youth (HCY), Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER), and Emergency Assistance to Nonpublic Schools (EANS) – provide essential resources to help schools and students recover from the lasting impacts of the pandemic.   

Attorney General Ellison and the coalition asserted that ED’s arbitrary and abrupt termination of the states’ access to these funds is causing a massive, unexpected budget gap that will hurt students and teachers by cutting off vital education services.

Judge Ramos today granted the states’ motion for a preliminary injunction barring ED from blocking states’ access to ARPA funding. The preliminary injunction order issued today prevents ED from enforcing a March 28, 2025 letter from Education Secretary Linda McMahon rescinding states’ ability to access their awarded ARPA funding. 

Joining Attorney General Ellison in filing this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Delaware, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Nevada, Oregon, and the District of Columbia, along with the Governor of Pennsylvania.