AG Brown Joins Lawsuit To Block Federal Limits On Social Services

Washington State Attorney General Nick Brown has joined a coalition of 20 other attorneys general in suing the federal administration over new rules that threaten access to critical health, education, and social service programs. The lawsuit challenges recent federal actions that, according to Brown, unlawfully restrict states from serving all residents, regardless of immigration status.

Earlier this month, in what state leaders describe as a sudden and chaotic reversal of long-standing policy, the federal government issued notices blocking state safety net programs from providing services to individuals who cannot verify their immigration status. The coalition of attorneys general is urging the court to halt these directives and protect access to essential programs like Head Start, Title X family planning, adult education, mental health care, and community health centers.

“Congress designed these services to be widely accessible to people in this country. But now the Trump administration wants to do an immigration check as preschoolers file into the classroom, ready to learn their ABCs,” Brown said. “These notices impose unworkable requirements on state agencies and providers that are plainly intended to damage these vital support systems and intimidate vulnerable people.”

On July 10, the U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services, Education, Labor, and Justice issued a coordinated set of rules and guidance documents that reinterpret the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA). These new interpretations prohibit states from using federal funds to serve individuals unable to verify immigration status—a sharp break from long-standing federal practice under both Republican and Democratic administrations. The rules took effect immediately or with minimal notice, impacting not only undocumented immigrants but also some lawful visa holders and, in some cases, U.S. citizens who lack formal documentation.

The abrupt changes are already disrupting services nationwide. State programs are now expected to comply without having the systems in place to do so. Providers report that overnight compliance with sweeping regulatory changes is impossible, putting them at risk of losing federal funding. Programs such as Head Start, Title X clinics, community health centers, adult education, mental health, and substance use services may be forced to implement immigration verification measures or risk closure—some warning they lack the capacity to comply under any timeline.

In Washington, the guidance puts at risk community health clinics and mental health providers that serve all individuals, regardless of ability to pay, place of residence, age, or immigration status. It also burdens the state’s WorkSource centers and non-profits that offer job assistance, housing support, emergency services, and financial education. These programs, designed to serve broad populations, are not equipped to collect or verify immigration information. Advocates warn the new rules will discourage people from seeking help, cut off essential services, and strain already stretched community support systems.

Many of these services—such as public health programs aimed at preventing disease or job assistance initiatives promoting economic stability—are intended to benefit the broader community, not just individual recipients. The lawsuit argues that the federal government acted unlawfully by issuing these changes without following required procedures under the Administrative Procedure Act and by misinterpreting PRWORA to apply to entire programs rather than individual benefits. The attorneys general also contend the rules violate the Constitution’s Spending Clause by imposing new funding conditions on states without proper notice or consent.

The coalition is asking the court to declare the new rules unlawful, halt their enforcement, vacate the changes, and restore long-standing agency practices. They also seek to prevent future attempts to use PRWORA as a pretext to dismantle critical safety net programs.

Joining Brown in the lawsuit are attorneys general from Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaiʻi, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.