Please Follow us on Gab, Minds, Telegram, Rumble, Gettr, Truth Social, Twitter
Attorney General William Tong today, as part of a coalition of 19 attorneys general, filed yet another lawsuit, this time challenging the U.S. Department of Education’s plan to withhold federal funding from state and local agencies that refuse to abandon discriminatory DEI programs and policies.
The lawsuit comes as a result of the Department of Education's move to require state and local agencies to certify compliance with anti discrimination obligations in order to continue receiving federal financial assistance. Specifically, the Department requested certification of compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and the responsibilities outlined in Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard.
“Federal financial assistance is a privilege, not a right. When state education commissioners accept federal funds, they agree to abide by federal anti discrimination requirements. Unfortunately, we have seen too many schools flout or outright violate these obligations, including by using DEI programs to discriminate against one group of Americans to favor another based on identity characteristics in clear violation of Title VI,” said Acting Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Craig Trainor. “No student should be denied opportunities or treated differently because of his or her race. We hope all State and Local Education Agencies agree and certify their compliance with this legal and constitutional principle.”
Governor Ned Lamont and Education Commissioner Charlene Russell-Tucker responded, but refused to certify compliance with the new requirements, arguing "there is no lawful or practical way to do so given the Department’s vague, contradictory, and unsupported interpretation of Title VI."
In filing today’s lawsuit, Attorney General Tong and the coalition are seeking to bar the Department of Education from withholding any funding.
“There is just no question that Connecticut schools have and will continue to comply with federal civil rights laws. From the start, this has been about Trump and Linda McMahon trying to force their MAGA ideology on Connecticut students and teachers by unlawfully withholding our taxpayer dollars. This is illegal and deeply destructive, and we’re not going to let Trump and McMahon rob from our schools and imperil our children’s futures,” said Attorney General Tong.
The U.S. Department of Education provides Connecticut with nearly $400 million in congressionally mandated financial support each year for a wide variety of needs and services related to children and education.
As a condition of receiving these funds, state and local education agencies provide written assurances they will comply with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on race, color or national origin, and Connecticut has consistently and regularly certified its compliance with Title VI and its implementing regulations.
Connecticut informed the Department that it continues to stand by its prior certifications of compliance with Title VI and its lawfully issued implementing regulations in the Department’s possession but would not assent to the allegedly "unlawfully issued certification."
In the lawsuit, Attorney General Tong and the multistate coalition assert that the Department of Education’s attempt to terminate federal education funding is based on its "misinterpretation of Title VI violates the Spending Clause, the Appropriations Clause, the separation of powers, and the Administrative Procedures Act."
Attorney General Tong joins the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Wisconsin, and Washington in filing the lawsuit.
A copy of the complaint is available here.
