Attorney General Rayfield and a coalition of 20 other attorneys general today sued the federal administration to stop its unlawful attempt to restrict access to critical health, education, and social service programs. Earlier this month, in a chaotic reversal of agency policy, the administration issued notices prohibiting state safety net programs from serving many residents, regardless of immigration status. The change threatens access to critical services like Head Start, Title X family planning, adult education, mental health care, and Community Health Centers. Attorney General Rayfield and the coalition are asking the court to halt the new federal rules and act quickly to ensure continued access to some of the nation’s most crucial social services programs.
“The federal government’s actions threaten the basic services that thousands of Oregonians rely on every day—childcare, health care, housing, and more,” said Attorney General Rayfield. “These changes were issued with no notice, no legal justification, and no plan for how states are supposed to comply. The result is confusion, disruption, and the real possibility that families will lose access to the programs they depend on to survive.”
Starting on July 10, the U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services (HHS), Education (ED), Labor (DOL), and Justice (DOJ) issued a coordinated set of rules and guidance documents that reinterpret the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA). The agencies’ new interpretation restricts states from using federal funds to provide services to individuals who cannot verify immigration status – a major shift from long-standing federal practice under both Republican and Democratic administrations. Some rules took effect immediately or with minimal notice and affect not only undocumented immigrants, but also some lawful visa holders and, in practice, even U.S. citizens who lack access to formal documentation.
These new directives are already causing major disruptions. For example, because the notice took effect last week, state programs are now expected to comply immediately, despite having no infrastructure in place to do so. Most providers cannot implement dramatic regulatory changes overnight and, as a result, they now face a dramatic loss of federal funding. Many crucial state programs must look at instituting immigration verification measures – including Head Start, Title X Clinics, community health centers, anti-poverty resources, adult education programs, and critical mental health and substance use services – but some providers warn that they will not be able to change their practices no matter how much time and money they have to do so and therefore face closure.
If implemented, these proposed federal restrictions would have devastating consequences for Oregon families. Head Start programs may be forced to close if required to exclude children based on immigration status—putting childcare and early learning at risk for nearly 4,800 children across the state. Oregon could also lose over $3.1 million annually in Title X funding, cutting off access to reproductive and preventive health care for more than 2,200 low-income individuals.
And if Oregon Housing and Community Services is required to immediately verify immigration status to use Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) funds, vital assistance could be delayed or halted—leaving families without rent support, medical care, or transportation needed to keep their jobs. Even a short disruption in these services could mean eviction, job loss, and worsening health for vulnerable Oregonians
The lawsuit argues that the federal government acted unlawfully by issuing these changes without following required procedures under the Administrative Procedure Act, and by misapplying PRWORA to entire programs rather than to individual benefits. The changes also violate the Constitution’s Spending Clause by imposing new funding conditions on states without fair notice or consent.
The coalition is asking the court to declare the new rules unlawful, halt their implementation through preliminary and permanent injunctions, vacate the rules and restore the long-standing agency practice, and prevent the federal government from using PRWORA as a pretext to dismantle core safety net programs in the future.
Joining Attorney General Rayfield in filing this lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.
