Attorney General Tong Files Emergency Lawsuit to Protect Critical Homeland Security Funding from Politically Motivated Cuts

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09/30/2025

Attorney General Tong Files Emergency Lawsuit to Protect Critical Homeland Security Funding from Politically Motivated Cuts

(Hartford, CT) -- Attorney General William Tong, as part of a coalition of 12 attorneys general, filed a lawsuit to stop the Trump administration from unlawfully reallocating and constraining federal homeland security funding from states based on their compliance with the administration’s political agenda.

On Saturday, without any notice or explanation, and four days before the end of the federal fiscal year, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) significantly cut funding to certain states that are unwilling to divert law enforcement resources away from core public safety services to assist in enforcing federal immigration law. FEMA reallocating those funds to other states. The move came days after Attorney General Tong and a group of attorneys general secured a permanent injunction along with an opinion holding that the agencies violated the Constitution and the Administrative Procedure Act by conditioning all federal funds from FEMA and DHS on states’ agreement to assist the federal government in enforcing federal immigration law.

“Once again, Donald Trump is playing politics with disaster relief. We’ve already sued and won once before on this, but he’s not done. Now he’s defunding certain states and imposing arbitrary and unworkable conditions on states like Connecticut. We’ll keep fighting and we’ll keep winning to stop Trump from hurting our states,” said Attorney General Tong.

Many of the grant programs administered by DHS and FEMA were authorized by Congress in the wake of national emergencies, such as the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and Hurricane Katrina, to strengthen the nation’s preparedness for and response to emergencies and major disasters. These grants fund first responders’ salaries, pay for the training they receive, and support the mutual aid networks that allow them to mobilize when tragedy strikes. They also support crucial efforts to prepare for and prevent disasters, such as computer network testing to identify cyberattack vulnerabilities. For decades, administrations of both parties have operated these programs evenhandedly, supporting all 50 states in their efforts to prepare for and respond to emergencies and threats.

On Saturday, FEMA issued the award notifications for its single largest grant program, the Homeland Security Grant Program (HSGP), which allocates approximately $1 billion in funds annually for state and municipal efforts to prevent, prepare for and respond to acts of terrorism. FEMA granted only $226 million to the states filing today’s lawsuit. This was a $233 million, or 51%, reduction from the total amount that FEMA had previously stated it would provide to these states.

Some states saw even sharper cuts. For instance, Illinois received a 69% reduction in funds, totaling over $30 million. New York received a 79% reduction in funds, totaling over $100 million. DHS then redistributed the funds that it had cut to other states.

Smaller states like Connecticut receive a statutorily set minimum in FEMA funding. Connecticut’s funding remained flat at just over $8.7 million through the HSGP and the Emergency Management Performance grants in question. However, FEMA imposed a series of new arbitrary constraints on how and when states must spend their dollars. This includes a needless additional requirement that funds be spent during a single fiscal year, as opposed to the previously set three years, effectively defunding larger multiyear projects and those that require longer state and federal review processes.

In their lawsuit, Attorney General Tong and the coalition argue that the reallocation and constraint of funds is unlawful and violates the federal Administrative Procedure Act. The attorneys general are seeking a temporary restraining order to block the reallocation.

The attorneys general of Illinois, New Jersey, California and Rhode Island led the coalition. Attorney General Tong and the attorneys general of Delaware, the District of Columbia, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York, Vermont and Washington joined them in filing the lawsuit.

Twitter: @AGWilliamTong

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Media Contact:

Elizabeth Benton
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