Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown and 14 other state attorneys general have filed a new lawsuit aimed at stopping the U.S. Department of Education from ending federally funded school mental health grants
Brown said the planned cuts could cost Maryland schools and universities more than $3 million and threaten counseling programs that support students’ mental health
“Once again, the U.S. Department of Education is trying to eliminate grants that Maryland schools rely on to provide critical mental health and counseling services for our children,” Brown said in a statement. “We joined this lawsuit because our children’s well-being should never be traded away to fit a political agenda.”
The lawsuit argues the department is unlawfully trying to terminate grants that Congress approved to expand mental health services in schools. State officials said the move would jeopardize programs at Bowie State University and the University of Maryland, Baltimore, which train future school counselors and mental health professionals
Maryland and the other states were told in April 2025 that the congressionally-approved grants would be stopped because they conflict with President Donald Trump’s administration’s priorities
They claim the Education Department is targeting the mental health grants because of their perceived support for diversity, equity and inclusion
Brown, along with a coalition, filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington in July 2025 to stop the department from cutting the grants. They got an order from the court saying the cuts were unlawful in December of that year, according to a news release. The court also issued a permanent injunction to forbid the department from executing the cuts
In the statement, Brown’s office alleges that the Trump administration “has admitted most of the grants should have been continued, but they have nonetheless engaged in an ongoing campaign to hinder, threaten, and ultimately try to eliminate the mental health grants” in Maryland and other coalition states
The coalition is seeking a court order to block the grants from being terminated while the legal challenge proceeds
“Terminating the grants would result in the loss of millions of dollars in mental health services to Maryland elementary and secondary school students,” Brown’s office said in the release
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