Rhode Island's Attorney General is co-leading a coalition that's suing the Trump Administration for freezing nearly seven billion dollars in education funds.
Peter Neronha and the coalition say the cuts to six Department of Education programs are unconstitutional, unlawful, and arbitrary.
In Rhode Island, an estimated 29 million dollars in federal education funding is frozen.
“Education is critically important to Americans’ development, mobility, and success, which is probably why the President seeks to undermine it,” said Attorney General Neronha. “Each and every time this Administration unlawfully withholds critical federal funding, they know that what they are doing is unconstitutional, and yet they ignore the law anyway. This time, the President is taking aim at the growth and enrichment of our young people by freezing essential funding, approved by Congress, for a wide range of important educational programs, leaving the Rhode Island Department of Education and similar agencies across the country to scramble. Further, we know that the pandemic has had a dramatically negative impact on our kids’ education, and with this latest move, the Administration clearly intends to add insult to injury. We must collectively reject their attempts to stifle and oppress everyday Americans. Enough is enough.”
The coalition is asking the court to declare the funding freeze unlawful and block any attempts to withhold or delay the funding.
(Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
Photo: Anna Moneymaker / Getty Images News / Getty Images