ATTORNEY GENERAL LOPEZ ANNOUNCES INITIAL VICTORY IN LAWSUIT CHALLENGING PRESIDENT TRUMP’S ILLEGAL FEDERAL FUNDING FREEZE

News Release 2025-12 from Office of the Attorney General, January 31, 2025

HONOLULU – Attorney General Anne Lopez announced an initial victory in her lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump’s Office of Management & Budget’s (OMB) memo freezing federal grants and loans. Today, a federal judge in Rhode Island issued a temporary restraining order in the lawsuit filed by Hawaiʻi and a coalition of 22 other states. The temporary restraining order prohibits the Trump administration from pausing, freezing, impeding, blocking, canceling, or terminating access to federal funding. This temporary restraining order is valid until the Court rules on a motion for preliminary injunction.

“Since the founding of our nation, the constitutional system of government has been based upon mutual cooperation and respect between states and the federal government,” said Attorney General Lopez. “The citizens of Hawaiʻi pay taxes to the federal government, and the federal government, in return, provides federal funds to Hawaiʻi for programs that pay for crucial services such as law enforcement and healthcare. Hawaiʻi will stand up for its right to receive federal funds to which it is legally entitled.”

The State of Hawaiʻi is being represented in this lawsuit by Solicitor General Kalikoʻonālani Fernandes and Special Assistant to the Attorney General Dave Day who stated: “We are pleased with the court’s decision in issuing a temporary restraining order, which prohibits the Trump administration from impeding access to federal funding that has been lawfully granted to Hawaiʻi. The Department of the Attorney General is committed to fight for the rights of Hawaiʻi and its people.”

The lawsuit, filed by the coalition Tuesday, argued that the Trump administration’s memo violates the U.S. Constitution and federal law by creating new conditions on funding that has already been awarded. On Wednesday, only hours before an initial hearing in this case, the President hastily rescinded the memo, but public messaging both by the White House Press Secretary and on the White House’s official X account indicated that the funding freeze was still in effect. The states argued that rescinding the memo without unfreezing funding was an attempt by the administration to evade the lawsuit. Indeed, a lawyer for the Department of Justice argued during the hearing that since the memo had been rescinded, the states no longer had standing to sue. The Court, Judge John J. McConnell presiding, called this a “distinction without a difference,” and asked the parties to submit a proposed order for his review.

Today, Judge McConnell announced the temporary restraining order, agreeing with the states that the President overstepped his authority by overriding policy choices made by Congress and has violated his obligation to execute the laws passed by Congress by refusing to spend the money Congress has appropriated. Judge McConnell, in his order, stated, “Congress has not given the Executive limitless power to broadly and indefinitely pause all funds that it has expressly directed to specific recipients and purposes and therefore the Executive’s actions violate the separation of powers.”

Since the order has taken effect, communities and families across Hawaiʻi and the country have been harmed. The federal funding that has been frozen supports programs such as: WIC, a nutrition program for pregnant parents and infants; Head Start, providing preschool and support services for low-income children and their families; LIHEAP, providing home energy assistance for households that struggle to stay warm through the winters; the Medicare enrollment assistance program; school meals for low-income students; programs supporting homeless veterans reintegrating into our communities; programs that help victims of domestic violence seeking support to make safety plans and exit unsafe situations; and programs supporting refugees that have already arrived in our communities, by providing clothing, household goods, and rent assistance, as well as English classes and job placement. These programs also support critical public safety programs including those housed within the Department of the Attorney General, supporting the investigation and prosecution of Medicaid fraud and child sexual abuse cases.

Joining Hawaiʻi as plaintiffs in this suit are Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.

A copy of the decision can be found here.

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STATE OF HAWAIʻI JOINS 21 STATES AND DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA TO STOP TRUMP ADMINISTRATION FROM WITHHOLDING ESSENTIAL FEDERAL FUNDING

New Trump Administration Policy Would Block Trillions in Funding for Health, Education, Law Enforcement, Disaster Relief, and Other Essential State Programs

News Release 2025-09 from Hawaii Attorney General, Jan. 28, 2025

HONOLULU – Attorney General Anne Lopez today joined a coalition of 22 attorneys general suing to stop the implementation of a new Trump administration policy that orders the withholding of trillions of dollars in funding that every state in the country relies on to provide essential services to millions of Americans.

The new policy, issued by the President’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB), puts an indefinite pause on the majority of federal assistance to states. The policy would immediately jeopardize state programs that provide critical health and childcare services to families in need, deliver support to public schools, combat hate crimes and violence against women, provide life saving disaster relief to states, and more.

Attorney General Lopez and the coalition of attorneys general are seeking a court order to immediately stop the enforcement of the OMB policy and preserve essential funding.

“We are aware of U.S. District Court Judge Loren L. AliKhan’s ruling which blocks the federal grant and loan freeze until Monday,” said Attorney General Lopez. “It is imperative that we continue with our court filing to make sure that the enforcement of the OMB policy is halted.”

Attorney General Lopez continued: “The people of Hawaiʻi pay the federal government millions upon millions of dollars in taxes every year, and the people of this state are entitled to receive a broad array of federal funds to pay for law enforcement and other crucial programs in accordance with federal law. And the impacts of this policy withholding federal funds have already been realized in our state. Neither the President of the United States nor an acting federal budget official can unilaterally upend federal law and cause such mass uncertainty in the Hawaiʻi and our sister states by withholding federal funds authorized by law. The Department of the Attorney General will stand up for the rule of law in this nation.”

The OMB policy, issued late on January 27, directs all federal agencies to indefinitely pause the majority of federal assistance funding and loans to states and other entities beginning at 5:00 pm today, January 28. As Attorney General Lopez and the coalition note in their lawsuit, OMB’s policy has caused immediate chaos and uncertainty for millions of Americans who rely on state programs that receive these federal funds. Essential community health centers, addiction and mental health treatment programs, services for people with disabilities, and other critical health services are jeopardized by OMB’s policy.

Attorney General Lopez and the coalition also argue that jeopardizing state funds will put Americans in danger by depriving law enforcement of much-needed resources. OMB’s policy would pause support for U.S. Department of Justice initiatives to combat hate crimes and violence against women, stop drug interdiction, support community policing, and provide services to victims of crimes. In addition, Attorney General Lopez and the coalition of attorneys general note that the OMB policy would halt essential disaster relief funds to places like California and North Carolina, where tens of thousands of residents are relying on FEMA grants to rebuild their lives after devastating wildfires and floods.

While the administration has attempted to clarify the scope and meaning of the OMB policy, states have already reported that funds have been frozen. As part of their lawsuit, Attorney General Lopez and the coalition of attorneys general argue that OMB’s policy violates the Constitution and the Administrative Procedure Act by imposing a government-wide stop to spending without any regard for the laws and regulations that govern each source of federal funding. The attorneys general argue that the president cannot decide to unilaterally override laws governing federal spending, and that OMB’s policy unconstitutionally overrides Congress’ power to decide how federal funds are spent.

Joining Attorney General Lopez in the lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.

The Complaint can be found here.

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SA: White House revokes spending freeze in face of legal challenges | Honolulu Star-Advertiser

CB: Hawaiʻi Joins Legal Fight Against White House Funding Freeze - Honolulu Civil Beat