According to the Associated Press (Sept. 25, 2025), a federal judge in Rhode Island has ruled that the federal government cannot use the threat of withholding disaster funding to force states to cooperate on immigration enforcement activities.
A coalition of 20 state attorneys general had filed a federal lawsuit claiming that the Trump administration was threatening to withhold billions of dollars in disaster relief funds to states that did not follow its immigration enforcement rules.
Had the judge ruled otherwise, federal funding approved by Congress to states for recovery from devastating hurricanes, earthquakes, wildfires, floods and other natural disasters would have been endangered.
Colorado Sun, 7.18.2025
