AG Kaul Joins Coalition Seeking Preliminary Injunction to Block Mass Layoffs and the Elimination of Core Services at the Department of Education
MADISON, Wis. – Attorney General Josh Kaul
MADISON, Wis. – Attorney General Josh Kaul on Monday joined a coalition of 20 other attorneys general in filing a motion for a preliminary injunction as part of their lawsuit to stop the dismantling of the Department of Education (ED). On March 13, AG Kaul and the coalition filed their lawsuit after the Trump administration announced plans to eliminate 50 percent of the Department’s workforce. Following a March 20 Executive Order directing the closure of ED and President Trump’s March 21 announcement that, in addition to implementing layoffs, the Department must “immediately” transfer student loan management and special education services outside of the Department, AG Kaul and the coalition are seeking a court order to immediately stop the mass layoffs and transfer of services.
“Dismantling the Department of Education is an attack on the goal of having an accessible, quality education for all kids,” said AG Kaul. “The Trump administration’s attempt to destroy this agency should be blocked.”
As AG Kaul and the coalition assert, the Trump administration’s attacks on ED have already had serious consequences for families and students throughout the country. Mass layoffs of ED staff have led to the closure of the Department’s Office of Civil Rights locations throughout the country. Critical funding for state school systems has also been delayed. As the attorneys general argue, states rely on billions of dollars every year in funding for elementary and secondary education, services for children with disabilities, vocational education, adult education, and other crucial services. All of these programs will be severely disrupted if the administration’s incapacitation of the Department is not stopped.
AG Kaul and the coalition argue in their lawsuit and motion for a preliminary injunction that the Trump administration’s attacks on ED are illegal and unconstitutional. The Department is an executive agency authorized by Congress, with numerous laws creating its various programs and funding streams. The coalition’s lawsuit asserts that the executive branch does not have the legal authority to unilaterally dismantle it without an act of Congress. In addition, the attorneys general argue that ED’s mass layoffs violate the Administrative Procedures Act.
Joining AG Kaul in filing the lawsuit and motion are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia.