Attorney General Kris Mayes joined a coalition of attorneys general in filing a motion to enforce and a motion for preliminary injunction in NY v. Trump, the ongoing lawsuit challenging actions by President Trump, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), and federal agencies attempting to pause nearly $3 trillion in federal assistance funding allocated to the states that support critical programs and services that benefit the American people. The coalition today seeks to preliminarily enjoin the Trump Administration’s actions to impose a funding freeze, emphasizing the widespread and irreparable harm to states, which rely on billions of dollars of critical federal assistance for public services to ensure access to education, clean air and water, and health care, and to support essential infrastructure projects. "This funding is owed by law to the people of Arizona. Trump can try every trick he has up his sleeve to evade the constitution but I will be there to stop him," said Attorney General Mayes. "Arizonans who are impacted by the Trump administration not complying with this court order, should report any difficulty accessing funds they are owed to my office."
Citing evidence of ongoing disruptions impacting disbursements to states, and federal funds that remain blocked under the IRA and IIJA despite the court’s Temporary Restraining Order (TRO), which remains in place, the coalition also seeks to enforce the TRO to require the Trump Administration to disperse these funds.The motion further highlights the harm states face if funds under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and Infrastructure, Investment, and Jobs Act (IIJA, also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law) are not allocated as required by statute. For instance, IRA and IIJA funding strengthens domestic energy security, reduces energy costs, diversifies our domestic energy resources, rebuilds our domestic manufacturing economy, bolsters and modernizes critical infrastructure, and creates well-paying jobs while simultaneously reducing harmful pollutionAs detailed in the preliminary injunction motion, without access to federal financial assistance, many states could face immediate cash shortfalls, making it difficult to administer basic programs like funding for healthcare and food for children and to address their most pressing needs. This will have devastating impacts to the state of Arizona:
- The High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) program, supporting 27 initiatives, or drug task forces, and helps fund 704 full-time and 33 part time Arizona law enforcement officers and support public safety across the state
- More than 460,000 Arizona households rely on SNAP benefits to afford dinner on their table every night. And nearly 1 million Arizona children rely on federally provided school lunch and breakfast
- HeadStart, childcare and preschool for low-income children, serves more than 15,00 children in Arizona and more than 13,000 families-- that’s 13,000 Arizona parents who might have to stay home from work in the due to the loss of childcare.
- Tens of thousands of Arizona households rely on Section 8 housing support to afford their rent every month, including more than 7,000 renters in Phoenix alone.
- The nearly 630,000 Arizona families who qualify for federal assistance with their utility bills under LIHEAP could literally be left out in the cold—and lose their air conditioning in the summer.
- 17 Critical Access Hospitals and 55 Rural Health Clinics in Arizona could shutter without the federal funding they rely on. Emergency medical responder and critical care paramedic programs at seven rural EMS agencies in Arizona could be impacted.
- And more than 2 million Arizonans would lose their health coverage through Medicaid pursuant to this action by Donald Trump.
Attorney General Mayes joins the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Nevada, North Carolina, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin in filing the motions.
Original source can be found here.