A federal judge in the United States has delivered a significant blow to the Trump administration, blocking its attempt to withhold vital Homeland Security funding from states deemed uncooperative on immigration enforcement.
Court Ruling Deems Funding Cuts "Arbitrary and Capricious"
In a decisive 48-page ruling, U.S. District Judge Mary McElroy ordered the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to restore previously announced grant allocations. The judge found the administration's move to slash more than $233 million from a coalition of states was unlawful.
The affected jurisdictions included Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington. These funds are part of a $1 billion federal programme designed to assess risks and largely channel money to local police and fire departments for counterterrorism and emergency response.
Funding Held Hostage Over Immigration Policy
The legal battle began after a coalition of 12 state attorneys general sued the administration. They argued their states were being penalised with drastically reduced grants specifically because they maintained so-called "sanctuary" policies, limiting cooperation with certain federal immigration enforcement actions.
Judge McElroy, who was appointed by President Trump, strongly criticised the administration's methodology. "What else could defendants’ decisions to cut funding... be if not arbitrary and capricious?" she wrote. She noted conspicuous, round-number cuts that slashed "millions-place digits," concluding no rational formula could produce such a result.
The ruling came just over a week after a shooting at Brown University, which the judge cited as a stark example of why the funding is critical. "The funding at issue here supports vital counterterrorism and law enforcement programmes," McElroy stated, adding that holding it hostage based on "political whims" was both "unconscionable and unlawful."
A Victory for States and a Rebuke for White House
This decision solidifies a legal win for the states and follows a separate ruling that found it unconstitutional to tie FEMA disaster funding to immigration enforcement cooperation.
Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell hailed the victory. "This ensures that the Trump Administration cannot punish states that refuse to help carry out its cruel immigration agenda, particularly by denying them lifesaving funding," she said in a statement.
Judge McElroy's ruling emphasised the grave responsibility of the DHS, stating its "wanton abuse" of the grant administration process was particularly troublesome given its duty to safeguard the nation. The Department of Homeland Security and FEMA did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the ruling issued on Tuesday 23 December 2025.
