Federal Accountability

OAKLAND — California Attorney General Bonta today issued a statement on the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island’s decision granting a temporary restraining order that immediately restores $11 billion in critical public health funding to state and local public health agencies across the country, including $972 million to California.

“Two days after filing our 9th lawsuit against the Trump Administration, we have secured a temporary order that restores public health funding and ensures communities nationwide are prepared for public health threats,” said Attorney General Bonta. “As our lawsuit continues, we remain steadfast in our commitment to ensure state and local health agencies have what they need to keep Americans healthy and safe.”

Beginning on March 24, 2025, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) abruptly, with no advance notice or warning, issued termination notices to state and local public health agencies across the country, purporting to end federal funding for grants that provide essential support for a wide range of urgent public health needs, including identifying, tracking, and addressing infectious diseases; ensuring access to immunizations; and modernizing critical public health infrastructure. The federal funding was appropriated by Congress to ensure the United States is better prepared for future public health threats.

On Tuesday, Attorney General Bonta announced co-leading a coalition of 23 states and the District of Columbia in filing a lawsuit against the Trump Administration’s HHS and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. over the unlawful termination of public health funding. Today, the court responded by granting the requested temporary restraining order. 

The order temporarily restores essential public health funding and vital programs that serve millions of Californians, including children, rural communities, and nursing homes, including: 

• Over $800 million that the California Department of Public Health intended to use, in part, to vaccinate 4.5 million children statewide and assist hospitals in directing injured and ill patients to available health facilities during all types of emergencies, where efficient routing saves lives. 
• $119 million to the California Department of Health Care Services which supports key programs, including substance use disorder prevention and early intervention services for youth in at least 18 counties. 
• $45 million to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health to use in part, to strengthen the County’s efforts to prevent the spread of measles, and seasonal and avian influenza. 

A copy of the order will become available here. 

9th lawsuit against Trump Administration argues that abrupt termination of federal funds is unlawful 

Funding was appropriated by Congress in response to COVID-19 pandemic to ensure that U.S. is better prepared for future public health threats 

OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today announced co-leading a coalition of 23 states and the District of Columbia in filing a lawsuit against the Trump Administration’s U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. over the unlawful termination of $11 billion in critical public health funding. Beginning on March 24, 2025, HHS abruptly, with no advance notice or warning, issued termination notices to state and local public health agencies across the country, purporting to end federal funding for grants that provide essential support for a wide range of urgent public health needs, including identifying, tracking, and addressing infectious diseases; ensuring access to immunizations; and modernizing critical public health infrastructure. The federal funding was appropriated by Congress to ensure the United States is better prepared for future public health threats. Filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island, the lawsuit by the attorneys general alleges that the termination notices are unlawful in several ways under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). The coalition is also seeking a temporary restraining order to maintain the status quo and immediately restore the public health funding due to the irreparable harm that their respective states and their local health jurisdictions would otherwise suffer. California stands to lose more than $972 million from these cancellations by HHS.

“Over and over, I’ve made clear that my office will only take legal action against the Trump Administration when it breaks the law. Unfortunately, but predictably, that has happened once again,” said Attorney General Bonta. “Congress explicitly authorized funding for the grants at issue to help keep our country healthy and protect us from future pandemics. HHS and its Secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., cannot unilaterally do away with that critical federal funding. My fellow attorneys general and I are committed to defending the rule of law. We know how high the stakes are in our respective states — thousands of jobs and key public health programs and initiatives could be eliminated.” 

According to the Trump Administration, funding for the grants is “no longer necessary” because the grants were appropriated through one or more COVID-19 related laws, and the COVID-19 pandemic is over. In the lawsuit, the attorneys general allege: 

• The termination notices violate the APA because they are contrary to law. The foreseeable end of the COVID-19 pandemic is not a lawful basis to terminate “for cause.” Terminations “for cause” are only permissible based on a grant recipient’s “material failure” to comply with the applicable terms and conditions of the grants and agreements. The Trump Administration has never alleged, much less demonstrated, any failure by the fund recipients to comply with the applicable terms and conditions of the grants and agreements. In addition, federal law requires the HHS Secretary to “provide to the State involved adequate notice and an opportunity for a hearing” prior to terminating Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) grants, which fund mental health and substance abuse services. HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. provided absolutely no notice or opportunity for a hearing before terminating the grants, effective immediately.
• The termination notices further violate the APA because they are arbitrary and capricious. Among other things, they assumed, with no legal or factual support, that all appropriations in COVID-19 related laws were only intended for use during the pandemic. In fact, HHS granted numerous extensions to the performance period of many grants issued to Plaintiff States and their local health jurisdictions, some of which were scheduled to end as late as June 2027. The termination notices are also arbitrary and capricious because they failed to undertake any individualized assessments of the grants or cooperative agreements, including any analysis of the benefits of this public health funding or the dire consequences of termination. 
• The Trump Administration’s unlawful withholding of funds has already caused substantial confusion and will result in immediate and devastating harm to their states, their local health jurisdictions, their residents, and public health writ large.

Without this essential public health funding, vital programs that serve millions of Californians, including children, rural communities, and nursing homes, will be jeopardized. For example, the federal government terminated over $800 million that the California Department of Public Health intended to use, in part, to vaccinate 4.5 million children statewide and assist hospitals in directing injured and ill patients to available health facilities during all types of emergencies, where efficient routing saves lives. The California Department of Health Care Services is set to lose over $119 million, which the state needs to support key programs, including substance use disorder prevention and early intervention services for youth in at least 18 counties. And the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health will lose over $45 million that was slated, in part, to strengthen the County’s efforts to prevent the spread of measles, and seasonal and avian influenza. 

Attorney General Bonta is co-leading the litigation with the attorneys general of Colorado, Minnesota, Rhode Island, and Washington. They are joined by the attorneys general of Arizona, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, and Wisconsin, as well as the Governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania. 

A copy of the complaint is available here. 

OAKLAND — California Attorney General Rob Bonta today issued the following statement in response to a court granting a preliminary injunction in National Treasury Employees Union v. Vought, a lawsuit challenging the Trump Administration’s efforts to dismantle the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). The decision prevents the Trump Administration from further demolishing the agency vital to federal consumer protections while litigation in this case proceeds. Last month, Attorney General Bonta joined a coalition of attorneys general in submitting an amicus brief arguing that the shuttering of the CFPB would cause catastrophic harm to consumer protections nationwide and leave state agencies with the sole responsibility to protect consumers from conduct regulated by the CFPB. 

“The CFPB is the top cop protecting American families who want to buy a home and people who want to borrow money to buy a car or attend college. The CFPB is for everyone. This agency fights for hardworking people who don’t want to get cheated by big banks and predatory lenders and protects a level playing field where businesses can succeed on merit rather than by cutting corners and cheating their customers,” said Attorney General Bonta. “The court order today prevents the Trump Administration from continuing its illegal attempt to destroy the agency looking out for consumers across the country. I celebrate this early win and will continue to use the power of my office to advocate for essential consumer protections nationwide.”

OAKLAND – California Attorney General Rob Bonta today, as part of a multistate coalition, filed a motion to intervene to defend the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) chemical accident safety rule adopted in 2024. The rule requires facilities, such as refineries and chemical manufacturing plants, to take steps to prevent chemical accidents, which includes requiring hazardous facilities to implement prevention plans, safety planning for employees, increase community transparency, and prepare for extreme weather risks. The rule protects communities, especially environmental justice communities, that are exposed to chemical accidents due to these facilities’ close proximity. Currently, the rule is being challenged by a coalition of 14 states, led by Oklahoma; separate challenges have also been filed by industry groups including the National Association of Chemical Distributors and the American Chemistry Council. Just this month, The Trump Administration has announced its intent to reconsider this rule as a part of its broader agenda to dismantle environmental and public health safeguards.

“Chemical disasters pose serious risks, including long-term health effects and devastating economic consequences. Without stringent safety protocols, proper emergency response planning, and corporate accountability, communities will remain vulnerable to preventable catastrophes,” said Attorney General Bonta.  “That’s why I, alongside attorneys general nationwide, are filing this motion. Any attempt to rollback this rule would not only curtail the environmental and economic benefits but could also have irreversible impacts on lives that are preventable.” 

Chemical accidents, including explosions, and releases of hazardous chemicals are an inevitable part of the operation of large, complex facilities using highly hazardous materials. The worst cases include large explosions and large releases of toxic gases or liquids, causing multiple injuries or deaths. Since 2001, there have been at least five chemical accidents in California large enough to require investigations by the United States Chemical Safety Board. Smaller accidents are even more prevalent. These chemical plants and refineries are disproportionately located in some of the most disadvantaged communities in the state. 

In 1986, responding to a series of serious chemical accidents in the 1970s and 1980s, California created a risk management and prevention program, now called the California Accidental Release Prevention (CalARP) Program. Similar to the federal Risk Management Plan Rule, CalARP requires regulated entities to adopt a program, explaining how the facility will identify and mitigate the chemical accident risks specific to the facility. The facility must adhere to robust safety measures, including accident prevention and public transparency goals, and implement protections to mitigate potential consequences of chemical accidents. Facilities that are covered by both the federal and state programs must comply with the requirements of each. 

Attorney General Bonta joins the attorneys general of Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, District of Columbia, and Harris County, Texas, in filing the motion.

A copy of the motion is available here. 

Leads multistate coalition in filing an amicus brief in Haitian-Americans United v. Trump

OAKLAND – California Attorney General Rob Bonta today, leading a multistate coalition, filed an amicus brief in Haitian-Americans United v. Trump in support of a challenge to the early termination of the Temporary Protected Status (TPS) designation for Haitians and Venezuelans. TPS is a critical humanitarian program that allows immigrants of designated countries to remain in the United States due to ongoing armed conflict, environmental disaster, or extraordinary and temporary conditions in their home countries. Since taking office, the Trump Administration has taken the unprecedented and unlawful action of attempting to cancel TPS for more than 800,000 immigrants fleeing dangerous conditions in their home countries. 

“The Trump Administration seeks to strip more than 50% of all TPS holders of legal protections that allow them to live lawfully in this country. In doing so, it threatens to force these individuals to choose between living in the shadows here in America or returning to dangerous conditions in their home countries,” said Attorney General Bonta. “TPS holders are neighbors and co-workers, teachers and students, entrepreneurs and job-creators. They are integral parts of their communities and important contributors to our economy. I urge the court to prevent the Trump Administration’s heartless and unlawful attempt to revoke their legal immigration status.” 

In the amicus brief, Attorney General Bonta and the coalition urge the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts to prevent the Trump Administration’s order from going into effect, arguing that the termination of Haitian and Venezuelan TPS is unlawful and will:

• Result in irreparable harm to families, stripping members of work authorization and exposing them to the threat of deportation.
• Harm states’ economies and workforces as TPS holders, including the Haitian and Venezuelan communities, are dynamic contributors to California and other states’ economies.
• Raise healthcare costs and pose substantial risks to public health.
• Create challenges for jurisdictions across the country in enforcing their criminal codes and protecting public safety.

Attorney General Bonta is committed to upholding the rights and protections of all of California’s residents, including the nearly 11 million immigrants who call California home. He has defended pathways for legal immigration for those fleeing dangerous conditions in their home counties, supported a challenge to the early termination of the TPS designation for Venezuela, and secured a preliminary injunction in his lawsuit challenging the President’s unlawful executive order seeking to end birthright citizenship.

Attorney General Bonta, with Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell and New York Attorney General Letitia James, leads the attorneys general of Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin in filing the brief.  

A copy of the brief can be found here. 

OAKLAND – California Attorney General Rob Bonta, leading a coalition of 23 state attorneys general, asked the District Court for the District of Rhode Island to enforce its preliminary injunction against the Trump Administration as states continue to face obstacles in accessing obligated Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funding. Despite the coalition’s success in unlocking billions in wrongfully frozen funds through a preliminary injunction and earlier motion to enforce, the Trump Administration has continued to freeze millions of dollars in FEMA funding for critical emergency preparedness and recovery programs, including disaster relief for communities affected by the Maui wildfires.

“The Trump Administration must follow the law and release vital, previously awarded FEMA funding to the states,” said Attorney General Bonta. “Without this funding, Hawaii and other states may be forced to wind down disaster relief programs, including those actively helping victims of the Maui wildfires rebuild. We cannot let the Trump Administration duck its legal obligation here as it attempts to seize the power of the purse at the expense of Congress and the U.S. Constitution.”

In January, a coalition of 23 attorneys general, led by the attorneys general of California, New York, Rhode Island, Illinois, and Massachusetts, sued the Trump Administration over its attempt to freeze up to $3 trillion in federal funding. The U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island quickly granted the attorneys general’s request for a temporary restraining order, blocking the freeze’s implementation until further order from the court. Soon after, the attorneys general filed motions for enforcement and a preliminary injunction to stop the illegal freeze and preserve federal funding that Congress appropriated and that families, communities, and states rely on. The court granted the motion for enforcement, ordering the Administration to immediately comply with its temporary restraining order, and later, the motion for a preliminary injunction.  

Attorney General Bonta is joined by the attorneys general of Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, North Carolina, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin in filing the motion to enforce.

A copy of the motion to enforce is available here.

Cites immediate and potentially devastating harms to California schools and students 

OAKLAND – California Attorney General Rob Bonta today led a multistate coalition in filing a motion for a preliminary injunction to prevent the Trump Administration’s mass firing of U.S. Department of Education employees and the transfer of core statutory functions to other departments. These actions will devastate the Department of Education’s ability to meet its statutory obligations across numerous programs — direct funding for K-12 education, student aid, services for students with disabilities, civil rights enforcement, vocational training, and more. California schools alone receive $7.9 billion annually from the Department of Education, and these schools have already reported impacts and disruptions to their ability to provide public education to California’s children as a result of these actions. As such, Attorney General Bonta and the coalition argue that the actions violate the Administrative Procedures Act, are unconstitutional, and should be enjoined while litigation continues.

“California receives billions of dollars each year from the U.S. Department of Education. The programs and initiatives these funds support help ensure all our children have access to a high-quality public education and are able to learn in a safe, healthy environment,” said Attorney General Bonta. “All of this is at risk with the Trump Administration’s mass firing of Department employees and outsourcing of core statutory functions like the administration of federal student loans. President Trump has made no secret of his desire to shut down the Department of Education for good – and we know that these actions are just a step toward that end goal. But as his own administration has acknowledged, he lacks the authority to unilaterally do so. I respectfully ask the court to block the Trump Administration’s efforts to dismantle the Department of Education from within while our litigation continues.”

On March 11, the Department of Education initiated a mass termination impacting nearly 50% of the Department’s employees, as part of the Trump Administration’s “final mission” to dismantle the Department. The mass firings were not accompanied by any reasoning to explain why these employees — and indeed, some whole teams — were targeted. The rationale is nevertheless clear — the Trump Administration believes the Department should not exist and is using these firings as a tool in furtherance of that goal. President Trump’s directive last week for Education Secretary Linda McMahon to take all necessary steps to dismantle the Department is further evidence that the firings are part of a broader effort to undermine the Department’s ability to carry out its most vital, congressionally-mandated functions. These steps including transferring the administration of federal student loans to the Small Business Administration, which recently fired 40% of its workers, and of special needs and nutritional programs to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The U.S. Department of Education provides $7.9 billion annually in federal funding to more than 9,000 public schools across California – serving 5.8 million students. This includes funding for Title I to support low-income families, Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) funds and support for students with disabilities, school lunch programs, services to families living on military bases and Indian reservations, and post-secondary financial aid. Already, the mass firings have led to the closure of seven regional offices of the Office for Civil Rights, including the one in San Francisco, leaving 1,500 pending cases, including open investigations, cases in mediation, resolved cases under monitoring, and complaints under research by staff, in limbo. 

It is clear that the mass firing of nearly 50% of all Department of Education employees will make it impossible for the Department to meet its current obligations under federal law, violating the separation of powers and the Executive Branch’s obligation to take care that the law is faithfully executed, and exceeding the Department’s authority under the law in violation of the Administrative Procedures Act. Given the immediate and potentially devastating harm that these firings and subsequent transfer of core programs could cause to California’s schools and children, Attorney General Bonta, along with the coalition, respectfully asks the court to grant a preliminary injunction while the states’ litigation continues.  

Attorney General Bonta is leading this lawsuit with Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez, Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Campbell, and New York Attorney General Letitia James. They are joined by the attorneys general of Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, Wisconsin, Vermont, and the District of Columbia.

A copy of the motion is available here. 

OAKLAND – California Attorney General Rob Bonta today, as part of a multistate coalition, filed an amicus brief in Svitlana Doe, et al., v. Kristi Noem, et al., in support of pathways to humanitarian parole that allow certain vulnerable immigrants to legally enter and remain in the United States to apply for temporary or permanent immigration status. Upon taking office, President Trump directed the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to terminate these pathways, jeopardizing the immigration status of Afghans who supported U.S. interests abroad; Ukrainians displaced by Russia’s invasion; and Cubans, Haitians, Nicaraguans, and Venezuelans fleeing dangerous conditions in their home countries. In the brief, Attorney General Bonta and a multistate coalition argues the termination of these pathways would upend the lives of tens of thousands of lawfully present immigrants, tear communities and families apart, and deprive the states of the significant economic and social benefits these immigrants provide.   

“Since taking office, President Trump has waged war on immigrants who are in this country legally – American-born children, refugees displaced by war or disaster at home, individuals who have fled from political instability or violence, and those who provided assistance to the U.S. military at great personal risk,” said Attorney General Bonta. “The termination of pathways to secure temporary immigration status threatens to upend the lives of tens of thousands of immigrant families and to rob states like California of the vital economic and societal benefits these families provide. I respectfully urge the court to order the Trump Administration to restore these vital pathways for legal immigration while litigation continues.”

In response to various global humanitarian emergencies, the Biden Administration implemented the Uniting for Ukraine parole pathway to benefit Ukrainians fleeing the Russian war, as well as similar relief for those fleeing conditions in Venezuela, Cuba, Haiti, and Nicaragua. The Biden Administration also implemented Operation Allies Welcome to lead and coordinate ongoing efforts across the federal government to support vulnerable Afghans, including those who worked alongside the U.S. in Afghanistan. At President Trump’s direction, the Department of Homeland Security abruptly stopped processing new applications for parole pathways and barred current parolees from applying for other forms of temporary or permanent immigration status earlier this year. 

Immigrant-led households in California paid $61.8 billion in state and local taxes in 2023 and spent $404.4 billion in their local economies. Immigrants made up nearly one-third of California’s labor force, holding 46.1% of healthcare aide jobs and 62.2% of agricultural jobs.

In the amicus brief, the multistate coalition argues that ending these parole pathways would harm California and other states, including by preventing these individuals from contributing positively to our workforces and growing our economies, especially in businesses and industries facing persistent labor shortages. The coalition also highlights the significant harms of forcing these individuals to return to dangerous, violent, and repressive conditions and the resulting separation of families with mixed immigration status.

Attorney General Bonta joins the attorneys general of New York, Illinois, Connecticut, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin in filing the brief. 

A copy of the brief is available here.

OAKLAND – California Attorney General Rob Bonta today joined a coalition of 12 attorneys general in submitting a comment letter opposing the U.S. Department of State’s proposal to eliminate the option of “X” as a marker for gender on U.S. passports for individuals who identify as transgender or nonbinary. The Department has also sought to change the use of “gender” to “sex” on these forms. In the letter, the coalition argues that these changes contradict state laws which permit the use of gender markers including “X” in official government documents, including birth certificates and driver’s licenses, among other concerns. 

“Everyone deserves the right to live as their authentic self, free from discrimination based on their gender identity. The Trump Administration’s attempt to force our transgender and nonbinary communities to use a passport that does not accurately reflect who they are is a direct attack on individual liberties and the work we do to protect our citizens from discrimination,” said Attorney General Bonta. “In California we recognize the importance of gender identity and are committed to protecting and defending rights of our transgender and nonbinary communities.” 

Prior to the Trump Administration’s issuance of the Executive Order entitled “Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government,” the Department of State had permitted gender marker changes and a designation of “X” for gender. Dating back as early as the 1980s, the federal government has recognized gender identity as distinct from sex assigned at birth and accordingly granted individuals the ability to change gender markers in identifying records and documents. It was not until this Executive Order that the Department sought to abandon its rooted practice of allowing for gender marker changes. 

In the letter, the coalition argues that the Department’s departure from the longstanding approach of allowing for gender marker changes lacks rational justification and will:

• Conflict with state laws, that allow individuals to use gender designations that correspond with their gender identity;
• Cause significant confusion and disruption in the administration of state-issued identification materials;
• Interfere with the rights of transgender and nonbinary citizens to travel freely, as the proposed changes would force transgender and nonbinary individuals to use a passport that does not accurately reflect who they are; and
• Expose transgender and nonbinary individuals to harm, including harassment, discrimination, and negative mental health outcomes. 

In sending today’s comment letter, Attorney General Bonta joins the attorneys general of Massachusetts, New York, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington. 

A copy of the letter can be found here.

OAKLAND - Attorney General Bonta, as part of a coalition of 20 attorneys general, filed an amicus brief in Pacito v. Trump in support of a challenge to the Trump Administration's Refugee Ban and Refugee Funding Suspension, arguing that the actions are unlawful, misrepresent the concerns and interests of states, and undermine states’ ongoing efforts to successfully assimilate and integrate newly arrived refugees.

A copy of the brief is available here.