Attorney General Clark Sues Trump Administration to Block Federal Restrictions on Public Benefits

Attorney General Clark Sues Trump Administration to Block Federal Restrictions on Public Benefits

Programs Impacted Include Head Start, Title X Family Planning, Community Health Centers, Among Others

MONTPELIER, Vt. – Attorney General Charity Clark today joined a coalition of 20 other attorneys general in suing the Trump Administration to stop its unlawful attempt to restrict access to critical health, education, and social service programs. Earlier this month, in a chaotic reversal of agency policy, the Administration issued notices prohibiting state safety net programs from serving all residents, regardless of immigration status. The change threatens access to critical services like Head Start, Title X family planning, adult education, mental health care, and Community Health Centers. Attorney General Clark and the coalition are asking the court to halt the new federal rules and act quickly to ensure continued access to some of the nation’s most crucial social services programs.

“The Trump Administration’s illegal attempts to restrict access to these critical safety net programs will impact many of our neighbors here in Vermont,” said Attorney General Clark.  “These programs improve the overall health and wellbeing of entire communities.”

Starting on July 10, the U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Education (ED), Labor (DOL), and Justice (DOJ) issued a coordinated set of rules and guidance documents that reinterpret the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA). The agencies’ new interpretation restricts states from using federal funds to provide services to individuals who cannot verify immigration status – a major shift from long-standing federal practice under both Republican and Democratic administrations. The rules took effect immediately or with minimal notice and affect not only undocumented immigrants, but also some lawful visa holders and, in practice, even U.S. citizens who lack access to formal documentation.

These new directives are already causing major disruptions. Because the rules took effect last week, state programs are now expected to comply immediately, despite having no infrastructure in place to do so. Most providers cannot implement dramatic regulatory changes overnight and, as a result, they now face a dramatic loss of federal funding. Many crucial state programs must now institute immigration verification measures – including Head Start, Title X clinics, community health centers, anti-poverty resources, adult education programs, and critical mental health and substance use services – but some providers warn that they will not be able to change their practices no matter how much time and money they have to do so and, therefore, face closure.

In Vermont, the Agency of Education receives federal funding to administer adult education and literacy programs and career and technical education programs. The Department of Health (VDH) administers the Substance Use Prevention, Treatment, and Recovery Services Block Grant and the Title X Family Planning Grant with federal funding. VDH has no way to implement the required verification without requiring people seeking substance use services to prove their status, which could result in a delay of services to all, leading to overdose or death. The cost of implementing a verification system for the Title X Family Planning Program would exceed the funds received for providing these essential services, undermining the purpose of the program itself. The Vermont Department of Mental Health also provides services, administered by local community behavioral health clinics, which receive federal funding, including crisis services, assessment and diagnosis, treatment planning, peer and family/caregiver support, case management, outpatient mental health and substance use services, and community care for uniformed service members and veterans. Many individuals accessing these services are in crisis and may not have the capacity to engage in an identity verification process, which could delay access to care or result in denial of services at a critical moment. This would not only put these individuals at risk, but could pose a risk to their families, caregivers, and the broader community.

These programs serve broad populations, including U.S. citizens, lawful residents, and new immigrants, and are not designed to collect or verify immigration status. Providers warn that the new rules could deter people from seeking help, lead to service cutoffs, and destabilize systems already stretched thin. Many of these programs, which prevent the spread of communicable disease or promote economic development, exist for the benefit and protection of the broader community, which will be harmed by the effects of the new guidance.

The lawsuit argues that the federal government acted unlawfully by issuing these changes without following required procedures under the Administrative Procedure Act, and by misapplying PRWORA to entire programs rather than to individual benefits. The changes also violate the Constitution’s Spending Clause by imposing new funding conditions on states without fair notice or consent.

The coalition is asking the court to declare the new rules unlawful, halt their implementation through, vacate the rules and restore the long-standing agency practice, and prevent the federal government from dismantling core safety net programs in the future.

Joining Attorney General Clark in filing this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, and Wisconsin.

A copy of the complaint is available here. The motion for preliminary injunction is available here.

Today’s lawsuit is the twenty-fifth case overall that Attorney General Clark has brought against the Trump Administration since President Trump took office in January. For more information on actions taken by the Attorney General on behalf of Vermonters, visit our website at ago.vermont.gov/ago-actions.