Office of the
Illinois Attorney General
Kwame Raoul

Chicago – Attorney General Kwame Raoul today won a court order stopping the Trump administration’s attempts to dismantle the Department of Education. On March 13, Raoul, as part of a coalition of 21 attorneys general, sued the administration after it announced plans to eliminate half of the department’s workforce.

 “The Department of Education plays a crucial role in protecting K-12 education for all Americans – from ensuring that students with disabilities have equal access to classrooms, to protecting students from discrimination and harassment,” Raoul said. “The Trump administration’s actions are unlawful, unconstitutional and most severely harm students who have the most need for the department’s programs and services. I’m pleased with the court’s decision, and I will continue to stand with my colleagues to ensure all children have the opportunity of a quality education.”

 In Illinois, the court’s order will prevent the interruption of nearly $800 million in Title I funding for schools that serve low-income students. Special education services for almost 280,000 Illinois students will continue to be supported by the Department of Education’s expert staff, and vocational rehabilitation services for students with disabilities, including students at the Illinois School for the Deaf and the Illinois School for the Visually Impaired, will not be interrupted. The order will also allow the department to continue to allocate resources to investigating and adjudicating complaints of discrimination filed by students with disabilities, and make data and technical support available to Illinois educators and administrators. Federal support for college students completing the FAFSA and seeking federal financial aid will also continue.

Following a March 20 executive order directing the closure of the department 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, Raoul and the coalition sought a preliminary injunction to stop the mass layoffs and transfer of services. Today, the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts granted the preliminary injunction, halting the administration’s policies that would dismantle the department and ordering all employees fired as part of the layoffs to be reinstated.

Raoul and the coalition argued in their lawsuit and motion for a preliminary injunction that the Trump administration’s attacks on the department 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, Raoul and the coalition argued that the mass layoffs violate the Administrative Procedures Act.

Joining Attorney General Raoul in the lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, Wisconsin and Vermont.