Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin Requests Additional Court Orders to Ensure Federal Funding for New Jerseyans

TRENTON — New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin, with a coalition of 22 other attorneys general, filed a motion for preliminary injunction in New York v. Trump, the ongoing lawsuit challenging actions by President Trump, the Office of Management and Budget, and federal agencies that attempted to pause or withhold nearly $3 trillion in federal assistance funding allocated to the states that support critical programs and services that benefit the American people. After the coalition obtained a temporary restraining order, today’s preliminary injunction motion seeks to extend that relief to prevent the Trump Administration’s actions to impose a funding freeze emphasizing the widespread and irreparable harm to states, which rely on billions of dollars of critical federal assistance for public services to ensure access to education, clean air and water, and health care, and to support essential infrastructure projects.  The coalition also moved to enforce the temporary restraining order issued by the court on January 30, 2025 in light of continued funding freezes that have continued to affect recipients in the States.

“The lawsuit filed by New Jersey and other states yielded a swift ruling from the Court that the Trump Administration cannot freeze funding for education, basic healthcare, law enforcement, and basic infrastructure. Given that the Trump Administration continues to withhold critical funding that go towards reducing energy costs for everyday New Jerseyans and supports our roadways and infrastructure, continued court intervention is needed to ensure that the rule of law is followed,” said Attorney General Platkin. “We will continue to fight these illegal actions until all funds New Jersey is entitled to are restored.”

As detailed in the preliminary injunction motion, without access to federal financial assistance, many states could face immediate cash shortfalls, making it difficult to administer basic programs like Medicaid, Head Start, law enforcement activity, and fixing transportation and infrastructure. Today’s filing seeks to ensure that critical funds are swiftly dispersed so that states can put them to use to protect for the health, safety, and well-being of their residents.

The lawsuit was brought by Attorney General Platkin and the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Nevada, North Carolina, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.

A copy of the motion for preliminary injunction and the motion to enforce is available here.

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