Washington joined 18 other states in suing the federal government on Friday, doubling down on their resistance to the Trump administration's push to end diversity, equity and inclusion programs in the nation's schools.
The lawsuit filed in Massachusetts by Democratic attorneys general challenges the U.S. Department of Education's threat to withhold federal funding from state and local agencies that refuse to abandon inclusion efforts.
The federal government provides Washington with about $1.4 billion in financial support each year for a wide variety of education needs, according to the Washington attorney general's office. This includes funding that supports students from low-income families and students with disabilities.
"A complete education depends on students learning in a safe and inclusive environment," Attorney General Nick Brown said in a written statement. "Washington state's policies put students first, and I will not let the Trump administration roll that back."
All 19 states in Friday's suit had refused to comply with the Trump administration's directive this month, which asked state education agencies to certify that no schools in their state were practicing diversity, equity and inclusion efforts, or risk losing federal funds. In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs tell the federal government they stand by their prior certifications of compliance with the law but refuse to abandon policies that promote equal access to education.
Washington's Superintendent Chris Reykdal resisted the order by telling the U.S. Department of Education in a letter that states have the authority to adopt their own learning standards, curricula and instructional materials. As of Thursday, he hadn't received any response in return.
Because the Trump administration hasn't defined what it means by diversity and inclusion, it is "wasting everyone's time and resources at the federal, state and local level when we have really big issues that this White House and federal agencies could be focused on," Reykdal said Thursday after two lawsuits similar to Friday's were filed. One came from the National Education Association and the American Civil Liberties Union and the other from the American Federation of Teachers in Maryland.
Washington's attorney general has filed or joined 11 other lawsuits against the Trump administration.
Brown said in the statement that he and other attorneys general seek to bar the department from withholding any funding based on "these unlawful conditions." In the statement, they assert that the department's attempt to end federal education funding violates the spending clause, the appropriations clause, the Administrative Procedures Act and the separation of powers.
In addition to Brown, the plaintiffs are the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin.
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