Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser and 20 other attorneys general across the country are suing the Trump administration in hopes of blocking what they call “the illegal dismantling of the U.S. Department of Education,” according to a news release from Weiser’s office.
The , filed Thursday in a U.S. District Court in Massachusetts, comes two days after federal officials of the education department’s staff as a step toward closing the department altogether. The plaintiffs are pursuing a court order to stop the Trump administration from axing the Education Department by significantly scaling down its staff and programs.
Shutting down the department “would in effect undermine decades of federal work to provide support for education that directly affects Coloradans, whether you’re a teacher, whether you’re someone who’s an employer, whether you’re a parent,” Weiser told ֱ. “Decimating the Department of Education is going to be harmful and we’re going to fight it.”
Colorado received more than $1.2 billion from the federal government to support education programs during the 2024 fiscal year, according to the news release. Nationwide, the department’s programs assist nearly 18,200 school districts and more than 50 million kids enrolled in about 98,000 public schools and 32,000 private schools. Its higher education programs give resources and support to more than 12 million students each year.
The lawsuit alleges that the Trump administration’s move toward eliminating the department is unconstitutional because that action is outside the purview of the executive branch. Only Congress has the constitutional power to shutter the department or put an end to services it has directed the federal government to fund.
“They are absolutely overreaching,” Weiser said. “Their authority is to faithfully execute the laws. They’re outside their authority when they’re seeking to dismantle the agency.”
The federal department is a key part of connecting students with services they need and are legally entitled to — including providing schools funding for special education students and ensuring college students can access federal student loans, including Pell Grants which help students from low-income backgrounds cover tuition, room and board and other higher education expenses. The federal department, overseen by Education Secretary Linda McMahon, also houses the Office for Civil Rights, which protects equal access to education for all students, maintains protections against sexual harassment and assault and upholds protections for LGBTQ+ students.
The department also collects data about students’ academic performance across states, among a long list of other responsibilities.
Weiser said Tuesday’s mass dismissal of education employees is alarming, constituting “indiscriminate actions that will leave key services unavailable.”
“What’s so heartwrenching here is this doesn’t appear to be done with any level of compassion, forethought or thinking ahead,” he said. “It simply is an impetuous action that is going to leave in its wake considerable harm.”
Colorado Department of Education spokesperson Jeremy Meyer wrote in an email that the state education department has not yet received any specific updates from the federal education department detailing how the staff firings could impact services to CDE.
“While it is difficult to predict the full impact of these cuts, our priorities in Colorado remain unchanged: ensuring that every child starts strong, stays engaged, and graduates ready for success in college, careers, and life,” Meyer wrote in a statement. “Many critical student services depend on federally committed resources, and we remain hopeful that these reductions will not disrupt Colorado’s ability to meet the needs of our students.”
Meyer also cited a news release from the federal department that noted it “will continue to deliver on all statutory programs that fall under the agency’s purview, including formula funding, student loans, Pell Grants, funding for special needs students, and competitive grantmaking.”
Other states that are part of the lawsuit are Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, Wisconsin, Vermont, and the District of Columbia.