Attorney General Aaron D. Ford has joined a coalition of 20 attorneys general in filing a motion for a preliminary injunction to halt the dismantling of the Department of Education (DOE). This legal action follows their lawsuit filed on March 13, challenging the Trump administration’s decision to reduce the department’s workforce by half.
President Trump’s March 20 Executive Order and subsequent announcement on March 21 have prompted AG Ford and his colleagues to seek immediate court intervention. The order directs the DOE’s closure and mandates that student loan management and special education services be transferred out of the department.
AG Ford stated, “The President is acting unlawfully again and, this time, his actions would leave many of Nevada’s children out in the cold.” He emphasized that dismantling resources critical for children’s success is both cruel and unlawful as it exceeds presidential authority.
The coalition contends that these administrative actions are already impacting families nationwide. They highlight how mass layoffs have led to closing DOE’s Office of Civil Rights locations countrywide, delaying essential funding for state school systems. Such funding supports elementary and secondary education, services for children with disabilities, vocational training, adult education, among other programs. The attorneys argue that these programs face severe disruption if DOE incapacitation continues.
In their lawsuit and motion for an injunction, AG Ford and his counterparts claim the Trump administration’s moves are illegal under constitutional law. They assert that Congress authorized DOE as an executive agency through various laws governing its programs and funding streams. Therefore, they argue only Congress can legally dismantle it. Additionally, they contend that the mass layoffs breach the Administrative Procedures Act.
Alongside AG Ford in this legal effort are attorneys general from Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan Minnesota New Jersey New York Oregon Rhode Island Vermont Washington Wisconsin along with District Columbia.
Review a copy of the motion.
