A federal judge on Thursday blocked the Trump administration from requiring almost two dozen mostly Democratic states to cooperate with federal immigration authorities in order to receive billions in transportation funding.
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned in April his department may cut off grants to any recipients that fail to “cooperate generally with Federal authorities in the enforcement of Federal law” — part of a wider gambit to push back against “sanctuary” jurisdictions.
A group of 20 states sued, arguing the administration doesn’t have the legal authority to tie transportation dollars — which states rely on for upkeep of roads, airports and other infrastructure — to immigration enforcement.
U.S. District Judge John McConnell sided with the 20 plaintiff states on Thursday, issuing a preliminary injunction that barred the government from enforcing the new immigration rules for “the States and their governmental subdivisions” while the lawsuit works its way through court.
The policy, McConnell wrote, “is arbitrary and capricious in its scope and lacks specificity in how the States are to cooperate on immigration enforcement in exchange for Congressionally appropriated transportation dollars — grant money that the States rely on to keep their residents safely and efficiently on the road, in the sky, and on the rails.”
The Rhode Island judge added that “Congress did not authorize or grant authority to the Secretary of Transportation to impose immigration enforcement conditions on federal dollars specifically appropriated for transportation purposes.”
California Attorney General Rob Bonta, whose state was one of the 20 plaintiffs, lauded the decision in a statement, saying President Trump has tried to “coerce state and local governments into doing his bidding.”
“President Trump is threatening to withhold critical transportation funds unless states agree to carry out his inhumane and illogical immigration agenda for him. He is treating these funds – funds that go toward improving our roads and keeping our planes in the air – as a bargaining chip,” Bonta wrote.
CBS News has reached out to the White House and Department of Transportation for comment.
The Trump administration has threatened to cut off some federal funding to “sanctuary” jurisdictions, or cities and states that limit local police from cooperating with federal immigration authorities. The administration argues these policies make it harder for agencies like Immigration and Customs Enforcement to apprehend undocumented immigrants, including those with criminal records. But some jurisdictions say that if local police are forced to cooperate with ICE, immigrants may be less likely to trust police.
In April, a federal judge in San Francisco blocked the Trump administration from enforcing executive orders threatening to pull funds from “sanctuary cities.”
Duffy wrote on X earlier this week that his department “will NOT fund rogue state actors who refuse to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement.”
“And to cities that stand by while rioters destroy transportation infrastructure — don’t expect a red cent from DOT, either. Follow the law, or forfeit the funding,” Duffy added, likely referring to protests against ICE in Los Angeles and other cities.
Jake Rosen is a reporter covering the Department of Justice. He was previously a campaign digital reporter covering President Trump’s 2024 campaign and also served as an associate producer for “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” where he worked with Brennan for two years on the broadcast. Rosen has been a producer for several CBS News podcasts, including “The Takeout,” “The Debrief” and “Agent of Betrayal: The Double Life of Robert Hanssen.”
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