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(CN) — A group of 16 states on Tuesday sued the U.S. Department of Education for cutting about $1 billion in funding for mental health services at primary and secondary schools.
The department canceled the grants, which were awarded under the Mental Health Service Professional Demonstration Grant Program and the School-Based Mental Health Services Grant Program and which the plaintiffs say have been an incredible success, without providing a detailed explanation other than that they conflict with the Trump administration’s priorities, according to the lawsuit.
“Starting this fall, many schools in plaintiff states will no longer be able to reliably provide mental health services to the kids that need them most,” the 16 states said in a complaint filed in federal court in Seattle. “These discontinuances threaten the very purpose of these programs — to protect the safety of our children by permanently increasing the number of mental health professionals providing mental health services to students in low-income and rural schools.”
Congress created the programs in 2018 and 2020, spurred by episodes of tragic and devastating loss from school shootings, the plaintiffs say. The multiyear grants are meant to address the shortage of school-based mental health service providers in low-income schools, and they aim to permanently bring 14,000 additional mental health professionals into U.S. schools that need it the most.
In their first year alone, the programs provided mental and behavioral health services to nearly 775,000 elementary and secondary students nationwide, and they have resulted in a 50% reduction in suicide risk at high-need schools, decreases in absenteeism and behavioral issues and increases in positive student-staff engagement, the states argue.
“By cutting funding for these lifesaving youth mental health programs, the Department of Education is abandoning our children when they need us most,” New York Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement “These grants have helped thousands of students access critical mental health services at a time when young people are facing record levels of depression, trauma, and anxiety.”
The 16 state attorneys general claim the Department of Education violated the U.S. Administrative Procedures Act, which regulates federal agencies, by terminating the grants without providing an adequate explanation.
The notices sent to state and local education agencies contained the same boilerplate language for every grantee, they say, and failed to provide any individualized reason for the change, or consider the tremendously harmful impact to children dependent on these mental health services.
The Education Department simply told the recipients that the programs either violate the letter or purpose of the federal civil rights law, conflict with the department’s policy of prioritizing merit, fairness and excellence in education, undermine the well-being of the students these Programs are intended to help or constitute an inappropriate use of federal funds.
“To this day, plaintiffs do not know which of the four theoretical reasons apply to their grants or why the Department discontinued their grants but not program grants to other states that had been awarded using the same priorities and selection criteria,” according to the complaint.
Representatives of the Education Department didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit.
The 2018 mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, prompted Congress to establish the Mental Health Service Professional Demonstration Grant Program to address a shortage of mental health professionals in high-need public schools.
Two years later, Congress added the School-Based Mental Health Services Grant Program, which provided funding to help schools hire, train, and retain school-based mental health staff.
After the devastating 2022 shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, Congress increased funding for both programs, appropriating more than $100 million annually to each program through 2026 and requiring the Education Department to submit detailed spending plans and biweekly updates.
“The Trump administration’s Department of Education is attempting to rip away funding and projects that support the mental health and well-being of our students — it’s not only immoral, it’s unlawful,” California Attorney General Bonta said in a statement. “These mental health programs were established by Congress following a wave of tragic and unacceptable school shootings, and they do critical work to ensure students can not only succeed but thrive."
The plaintiffs claim violations of the Administrative Procedure Act, the Spending Clause of the U.S. Constitution and the separation of power between the executive and the legislative branches of government and seek an injunction overturning the cancellation of the grants.
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