A coalition of civil rights organizations has sued the Department of Health and Human Services, seeking records that could reveal how the Trump administration developed a policy that attempted to freeze more than $10 billion in federal childcare and family assistance funding for five Democratic-led states.
The lawsuit, filed Monday in federal court, accuses HHS of violating the Freedom of Information Act by failing to respond to a request for documents submitted in March. The plaintiffs include the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU Foundations of Illinois and Minnesota, the National Women’s Law Center and the National Center for Law and Economic Justice.
At the center of the dispute is the administration’s decision earlier this year to impose new restrictions on funding distributed through the Child Care and Development Fund, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and the Social Services Block Grant. The restrictions targeted California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and New York, affecting programs that help low-income families pay for childcare and other essential services.
A federal judge later blocked the funding freeze, and HHS ultimately withdrew the policy. The new lawsuit focuses on what happened behind the scenes before those decisions were made.
The organizations are seeking communications among senior administration officials, internal analyses supporting the restrictions and records involving YouTube creator Nick Shirley, whose videos alleging widespread fraud among Somali-operated childcare providers in Minnesota received significant attention from conservative media and administration officials.
According to Reuters, the lawsuit argues that the requested records are necessary to determine whether federal officials relied on unsupported allegations, political considerations or incomplete information before threatening billions of dollars in federal assistance. (reuters.com)
The plaintiffs contend that the administration never adequately explained why restrictions were applied broadly across five states rather than being limited to any specific providers suspected of wrongdoing.
Instead, they argue, the policy threatened childcare funding relied upon by thousands of families who had no connection to the allegations.
The Child Care and Development Fund helps low-income parents remain employed by subsidizing childcare costs, while Temporary Assistance for Needy Families provides cash assistance and employment support to qualifying households. The Social Services Block Grant funds programs ranging from childcare and protective services to assistance for older adults and people with disabilities.
Advocates warned that delaying or interrupting those funding streams could force childcare providers to reduce services, lay off employees or close entirely, while parents could lose access to care needed to remain in the workforce.
The Freedom of Information Act generally requires federal agencies to respond to records requests within 20 business days unless limited exceptions apply. The civil rights organizations submitted their request on March 11 seeking emails, memoranda, policy discussions and communications related to the funding restrictions and the fraud allegations cited by administration officials.
According to the complaint, HHS failed to produce the requested records or provide the legally required determination, prompting the organizations to seek judicial intervention.
The lawsuit asks the court to order HHS to conduct an adequate search for responsive records and release all non-exempt documents.
The organizations say the records are necessary because administration officials repeatedly cited alleged fraud involving Somali childcare providers while defending policies that extended well beyond Minnesota.
They also seek communications involving Shirley after senior officials publicly referenced or amplified his reporting while discussing the funding restrictions.
The case arrives amid broader disputes over transparency within the Trump administration as advocacy organizations increasingly turn to the Freedom of Information Act to uncover internal decision-making surrounding immigration, education, healthcare and social service policies.
Civil rights groups argue that transparency is especially important when government actions affect vulnerable communities or threaten access to programs that millions of Americans depend upon.
The outcome could determine whether the public learns how one of the administration’s most controversial childcare policies was developed and whether outside political actors influenced decisions affecting billions of dollars in federal assistance.
HHS has not publicly detailed the internal process that led to the attempted funding freeze or explained why the restrictions were applied to five states rather than targeted investigations into individual providers.
The lawsuit does not ask the court to revisit the funding freeze itself. Instead, it seeks disclosure of the records that could explain the government’s reasoning and whether officials complied with federal transparency requirements before implementing the policy.
Linda Morris, senior staff attorney with the ACLU of Illinois, said in announcing the lawsuit, “Illinois residents deserve transparency from HHS about why the agency attempted to freeze billions of dollars in child care funding and what role misinformation may have played in that decision.”
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