New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin today responded to official confirmation that the U.S. Department of Education has released $158 million in previously withheld education funding to New Jersey. Attorney General Platkin joined a coalition in filing a lawsuit challenging the Trump Administration’s abrupt and unlawful decision to freeze this funding earlier this month.
“From the beginning, we have made clear that the President’s attempt to freeze $158 million in critical education funding for New Jersey was illegal and deeply damaging to students, families, teachers, and schools. Now, under pressure from our lawsuit, the Administration has relented,” said Attorney General Platkin. “There is simply no excuse for the Trump Administration’s reckless attempt to claw funding away from afterschool care and summer programs, teacher training programs, and programs for English learners and students with special needs—and we are glad that even the Trump Administration has now recognized that it made a grave mistake in freezing this funding. Make no mistake: we will continue fighting for New Jerseyans and protecting them from this Administration’s reckless and illegal cuts to federal education funding.”
Background
On June 30, the Trump Administration abruptly and unlawfully froze funding for six longstanding programs administered by the U.S. Department of Education. For decades, New Jersey and other states have used funding under these programs to carry out a broad range of programs and services, including educational programs for students with special learning needs and English language learners; summer school and afterschool programs for students; programs that train teachers and promote effective classroom instruction; community learning centers that offer students a broad range of opportunities for academic and extracurricular enrichment; and adult education and workforce development efforts. In New Jersey, an estimated $158 million in federal education funding was frozen, with many ongoing summer learning programs left immediately unfunded.
On July 14, Attorney General Platkin joined a coalition of 23 attorneys general and two states in filing a lawsuit and motion for a preliminary injunction, arguing that the freeze violates federal funding statutes and regulations authorizing these critical programs and appropriating funds for them, the Administrative Procedure Act, and the U.S. Constitution, including the separation of powers doctrine.
Attorney General Platkin is committed to defending New Jersey educational institutions and students against the Trump Administration’s illegal attacks. Attorney General Platkin has filed lawsuits challenging the Trump Administration’s unlawful termination of funding for K-12 teacher preparation programs, the Administration’s illegal dismantling of the Education Department, and the Administration’s imposition of unlawful conditions on the receipt of K-12 education funding. He has also secured other relief for New Jersey schools, including the funding released this week and tens of millions of dollars in previously awarded education funding to address the long-term effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on schools.
