Vermont has joined 23 other states and the District of Columbia in a lawsuit accusing the Trump administration of illegally withholding $6.8 billion in education spending just weeks before the start of the school year.
Vermont Attorney General Charity Clark joined the suit, which was filed on Monday in federal court in Rhode Island, to force the administration to release $26 million for afterschool activities, summer programs, English language instruction and more.
The state had been relying on the funds to arrive July 1 but was informed on June 30 by the U.S. Department of Education that the aid had been frozen to ensure it was “in accordance with the President’s priorities,” according to the suit.
Without those funds, school districts won’t be able to retain key staff, maintain high-quality educational programs or improve instructional capacity, Clark said in a press release.
“Once again, the President wishes to unconstitutionally undo appropriations made by Congress. The President does not have the power to freeze these funds — funds that Vermont schools are counting on. I am going to keep fighting for our Constitution, for Vermont schools, and for the future of our country,” Clark said.
The lawsuit is the 22nd case Clark has brought against the Trump administration since January.
Not all of those cases have had the support of Republican Gov. Phil Scott’s administration. Last month, as Seven Days previously reported, the state was unable to convince a federal judge that it deserved to get $17 million in federal funds for electric vehicle chargers, in part because the administration did not support the lawsuit.
The latest suit, however, had the cooperation of key administration officials, a spokesperson for Clark said.
“We are so grateful that Secretary Saunders has taken a leadership role in ensuring that we have adequate evidence demonstrating the harm that Vermont will experience if this plan were to take effect,” spokesperson Amelia Vath wrote in an email.
Each year the Department of Education makes around 25 percent of the grant funds available around July 1 so states and school districts can plan their budgets for the upcoming academic year.
The state has received the funds without incident for decades until now, Clark said.
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