Attorney General Ellison wins lawsuit stopping Trump administration from elimination of four vital federal agencies
Court bars Trump Administration from dismantling federal agencies supporting libraries, museums, minority-owned businesses, workers, and services for the unhoused
November 24, 2025 (SAINT PAUL) — Friday afternoon, Attorney General Ellison won his lawsuit protecting four federal agencies from being illegally dismantled by the Trump administration. The United States District Court for the District of Rhode Island on Friday granted a motion for summary judgment brought by Attorney General Ellison and a coalition of 20 other attorneys general. In April, Attorney General Ellison and the coalition sued the Trump administration to stop the implementation of an Executive Order that would dismantle the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA), the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS), and the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH). The court’s order permanently blocks the administration from eliminating these four agencies.
"Donald Trump is not a king and he cannot simply ignore laws passed by Congress,” said Attorney General Ellison. “Yet, when Donald Trump tried to dismantle government agencies created by Congress to reduce homelessness, support small businesses, resolve labor disputes, and more, he did exactly that. I am pleased to have won this lawsuit, protected the important work these agencies do, and upheld the rule of law. I don’t wake up every morning looking for reasons to sue Donald Trump, but when he violates the law and harms the people of Minnesota, I will not hesitate to meet him in court and defend our state."
The April lawsuit filed by Attorney General Ellison and the coalition aimed to stop the administration’s elimination of three federal agencies:
- IMLS, which supports museums and libraries nationwide through grantmaking, research, and policy development;
- MBDA, which promotes the growth and inclusion of minority-owned businesses through federal financial assistance programs; and
- FMCS, which promotes the peaceful resolution of labor disputes.
In May, Attorney General Ellison and the coalition secured a preliminary injunction stopping the administration from implementing the Executive Order, which sought to dismantle these three agencies. In June, the coalition filed an amended lawsuit seeking to protect another agency targeted by the same Executive Order, USICH, which coordinates the federal government’s efforts to prevent and end homelessness nationwide.
Attorney General Ellison and the coalition argued in the lawsuit that the Executive Order’s elimination of all four agencies violates the Constitution and the Administrative Procedure Act by attempting to override Congress. The president does not have the power to unilaterally eliminate federal agencies created and funded by Congress, and he cannot arbitrarily and suddenly cease agency programs. In its decision on the motion for summary judgment, the District Court sided with Attorney General Ellison and the coalition, ruling that the administration’s actions were unlawful, and barred the administration from taking any future actions to carry out the Executive Order’s elimination of the four agencies.
In addition to Attorney General Ellison, this lawsuit was filed by the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin.
