Chicago – Attorney General Kwame Raoul today, as part of a coalition of 23 attorneys general, filed a motion for preliminary injunction in NY v. Trump, the ongoing lawsuit co-led by Illinois challenging actions by President Donald Trump, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and federal agencies attempting to pause nearly $3 trillion in federal funding. The coalition seeks to enjoin the Trump administration’s actions to impose a funding freeze, emphasizing the widespread and irreparable harm to states, which rely on billions of dollars of critical federal assistance to support public safety and essential infrastructure projects, and ensure access to education, food, clean air and water, and health care. The coalition likewise seeks to further enforce the court’s initial order, explaining that the federal government has not uniformly implemented it across federal agencies, including by failing to unfreeze critical infrastructure funds.
“Despite President Trump’s actions since taking office, Jan. 20 was an inauguration – not a coronation of a leader to whom our nation’s Constitution and the rule of law does not apply,” Raoul said. “Illinois relies on federal funding to protect children from online predators, to enhance public safety by funding law enforcement departments, to invest in infrastructure for roads and bridges, and to support the farming industry that serves as the backbone of Illinois’ economy. I join with my fellow attorneys general in asking the court to issue more permanent relief against the callous uncertainty these funding freezes have caused for hundreds of thousands of Illinois residents’ daily lives.”
Raoul and the coalition are asking the court to enter more permanent relief, in the form of a preliminary injunction, against the Trump administration’s federal funding freeze, which was implemented in the early days of the administration in an effort to review all federal spending for consistency with the administration’s policy priorities. As the judge stated when granting a temporary restraining order against the funding freeze, neither the Constitution nor federal spending statutes allow the president authority to take such action.
The coalition’s filing today asks the court to make that relief more durable, explaining that the administration is certain to resume the funding freeze if it is not enjoined from doing so. In addition, without access to federal funds, many states could face immediate cash shortfalls, making it difficult to administer basic programs that benefit all Americans and address their residents’ most pressing needs.
The coalition separately filed a motion to enforce the court’s initial order against other federal agencies that have continued to freeze access to federal funds even after the entry of the order. In particular, the motion explains that the administration has continued to limit access to certain funds appropriated by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the Infrastructure, Investment, and Jobs Act (IIJA, also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law). IRA and IIJA funding strengthens domestic energy security, reduces energy costs, diversifies domestic energy resources, rebuilds domestic manufacturing economy, bolsters and modernizes critical infrastructure, and creates good-paying jobs while simultaneously reducing harmful pollution.
The coalition explained that the court’s initial order covers these funds, and the court should enforce that order to ensure that these critical funds are swiftly dispersed so states can put them to use to protect the health, safety and well-being of their residents.
Joining Attorney General Raoul in filing the motions are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Nevada, North Carolina, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin.
