Latest news with #CourtofFederalClaims
The Hill
08-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Federal judge blocks new Trump conditions for mass transit, homelessness grants
The Trump administration may not, for now, impose new conditions furthering the president's agenda on certain mass transit and homelessness services grants, a federal judge ruled Wednesday. Senior U.S. District Judge Barbara Rothstein, an appointee of former President Carter, temporarily blocked the administration from placing the constraints on hundreds of millions of dollars worth of grants for the local governments that challenged them, from the Seattle area to New York City. The constraints were meant to bolster core tenets of President Trump's sweeping second term agenda, the eight cities and counties that sued said, spanning efforts to eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies; facilitate mass deportations; and make information about lawful abortions less accessible. The challengers wrote in court filings that some plaintiffs were directed to decide whether to agree to the conditions or forfeit federal funding as soon as Thursday, which would have slashed 'critical' programs and services, forced workforce reductions and significantly impacted their budgets. 'Defendants have put Plaintiffs in the position of having to choose between accepting conditions that they believe are unconstitutional, and risking the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars in federal grant funding, including funding that they have already budgeted and are committed to spending,' Rothstein wrote in a terse five-page order. The Trump administration argued that lawsuit amounts to a contract dispute and should have been brought in the Court of Federal Claims, not before Rothstein. However, the judge rejected those arguments, finding that the challengers asserted claims based on statutory and constitutional rights, not a contract claim, and the injunctive relief they seek would not be available to them in the other venue. The order bars the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Department of Transportation and the Federal Transit Administration from enforcing the new conditions or withholding funding for 14 days. The local jurisdictions will likely seek longer-term relief, now that the pause is in place. Boston and New York City, the city and county of San Francisco and Santa Clara County in California and Pierce and Snohomish Counties in Washington state sued over changes to homelessness services grants. Washington state's King County, which includes Seattle, sued over the homelessness grant condition changes and mass transit funding.
Boston Globe
07-04-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
US bishops halt partnerships with federal government on aid programs, citing funding cuts
The decision means the bishops won't be renewing existing agreements with the federal government, the bishops said. The announcement did not say how long current agreements were scheduled to last. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Catholic bishops sued President Trump's administration in February over its abrupt halt to the funding of aid provided to newly arrived refugees, saying they are owed millions already allocated by Congress to carry out resettlement aid under an agreement with the federal government. Advertisement But a federal judge ruled that he couldn't order the government to pay money due on a contract, saying a contractual dispute belongs before the Court of Federal Claims. The bishops have appealed that ruling. Beyond that specific funding dispute is the Trump administration's halt to all new refugee arrivals. The Catholic bishops oversaw one of 10 national agencies, most of them faith-based, which contracted with the federal government to resettle refugees who come to the United States legally after being vetted and approved by the federal government. Advertisement Broglio's announcement didn't specify what the children's services program was. The bishops have overseen Catholic agencies resettling displaced people for a century. In recent decades, they have done so in a partnership with the US government, receiving grants that covered much, though not all, of the expenses. The Trump administration's 'decision to reduce these programs drastically forces us to reconsider the best way to serve the needs of our brothers and sisters seeking safe harbor from violence and persecution,' said Broglio, who heads the Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA. The announcement did not specify whether the cuts would lead to any layoffs, though Broglio asked for prayers for the 'many staff and refugees impacted.' Vice President JD Vance, a Catholic convert, accused the bishops conference in January of resettling immigrants who are in the country illegally in order to get millions in federal funding — an apparent reference to the resettlement program, which actually involves legally approved refugees. The bishops noted that rather than making money on the program, they receive less federal aid than the programs cost and need to supplement the funding with charitable dollars. Vance followed up his criticisms by appealing to Catholic teaching to justify immigration restrictions. That drew rejoinders not only from US bishops but an implicit rebuke from Pope Francis, who said Christian charity requires helping those in need, not just those in one's closest circles.
