MN Sues Trump Administration Over $914K In Education Funds

ST. PAUL, MN — Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison has joined a lawsuit involving 15 other states and the District of Columbia contesting the Trump administration's decision to revoke education funding.

The U.S. Department of Education already approved the distribution of the money in contention.

On March 28, the department notified states that it was unilaterally ending access to hundreds of millions of dollars in grants from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), which the department had previously determined the states could access through March 2026.

The lawsuit filed on Thursday contends that $914,868 is still owed to the Minnesota Department of Education.

“The Trump Administration’s cruel and reckless law-breaking continues," Ellison said in a statement.

"Arbitrarily cutting funds to help low-income and homeless children hurts not only those children, but taxpayers in every school district and state who will have to pick up the slack. We also allege these cuts are illegal, so we’re holding the Administration accountable yet again so they follow the law and stop harming Americans, especially our most vulnerable children."

Ellison and the coalition argue the move creates major budget shortfalls across the nation that will harm students, teachers, and public services.

They claim the decision violates the Administrative Procedure Act by reversing prior guidance without proper explanation and against Congress’s intent. The lawsuit seeks a court order to restore access to the funds.

Participants in the lawsuit are New York, Arizona, California, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C.