Judge rules Trump administration cannot block child care funding

A judge has blocked the Trump administration's freeze on the $10 billion in funding for child care and other services. This comes after California and four other states announced a joint lawsuit on Friday.

OAKLAND, Calif. - A federal judge in New York granted an emergency injunction late Friday afternoon, blocking the Trump administration from freezing $10-billion in funding to five Democratic-led states for child care and other social services.

Freezing funds is illegal

"This funding was lawfully appropriated by Congress. Congress voted on this. A president signed a budget bill appropriating this funding. The funding must be distributed under an article under the U.S. Constitution," California Attorney General Rob Bonta said, during a news conference Friday.

Bonta filed the lawsuit against the Trump administration with attorneys general from four other states: Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and New York on Thursday night.

It comes after the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services sent a letter accusing the five states of social services fraud, and said it would freeze $10-billion in federal funds. Those funds support the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) with nearly $2.4 billion; Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) with $7.35 billion, and the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG) with $869 million in federal funds.

Bonta says California accounts for about half of the federal funding freeze.

"$5 billion of the $10 billion at issue here is money that should go to California, and so millions of vulnerable Californians are being hurt now," Bonta said.

"Families will lose access to reliable childcare, forcing caregivers into an impossible choice of either missing work or leaving children in a potentially unsafe environment," New York Attorney General Letitia James said. "There is just one word to describe these cuts. Cruelty."

Bay Area day care providers react

Shruti Agarwal, operates a daycare center in Livermore.

"I run a daycare which has seven kids right now, four of which are on state subsidies or federal subsidies. And if this cut comes through, I unfortunately would have to let them go. And which means that those parents are struggling, they cannot pay the full price at any daycare because daycare is very expensive here in the Bay Area," Agarwal said.

"I would have to let my staff go. I have two staff and, with just three kids, it is not going to be possible for me to keep the program running. So I am potentially thinking of closing down if this comes through," Agarwal added.

Scott Moore, CEO of Kidango, says any funding freeze could have a devastating effect on children and families.

"We have 54 preschool and child care centers throughout the Bay Area. We're primarily funded by the state and federal governments, and we serve almost entirely low-income families.
Scott Moore, CEO of Kidango.

Moore says the state takes accountability seriously, and California has always taken steps to prevent fraud.

"We just had the department of social services doing an audit making sure families that enroll ar eligible," Moore said.

Pelosi and HHS reaction

House Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi joined other Representatives, sending a letter to Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Junior, demanding the release of the $10-billion dollars in federal funding.

"Congress appropriated these funds to support children and families, not to be withheld as political retribution," Pelosi's letter stated.

The Health And Human Services Department did not answer our questions about the origin of their "serious concerns" and what criteria they used to cut funding to only these five states and not the other 45 states.

Instead, a spokesperson pointed to a social media post by the department's general counsel accusing the lawsuit of being politically motivated, stating: "It’s unfortunate that these Attorneys general from these Democrat-led states are less focused on reducing fraud and more focused on partisan political stunts," HHS General Counsel Mike Stuart stated on his social media page.

"HHS stands by its decision to take this action to defend American taxpayers. We identified serious concerns in these states that warranted immediate review and action," Stuart stated.

"Just an allegation without any evidence, without any facts, without any data," Bonta said.

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