Washington State Joins Lawsuit Challenging Trump's Immigrant Policies and Welfare Regulations
In a move to challenge the Trump administration's recent policy changes, a coalition of state attorneys general, including California's Rob Bonta and Washington's Nick Brown, have filed a lawsuit in July 2025. The lawsuit aims to block the administration's new restrictions on public benefits for immigrants under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA).
The administration's policy change, set to take effect on July 10, involves a series of practical and procedural changes issued by the U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services, Education, Labor, and Justice. These changes restrict state safety net programs from serving all residents, regardless of immigration status, and target programs that deliver essential childcare, healthcare, nutrition, and education assistance.
According to the lawsuit, the federal government acted unlawfully by issuing these changes without following required procedures under the Administrative Procedure Act. The changes also violate the Constitution's Spending Clause by imposing new funding conditions on states without fair notice or consent.
The lawsuit argues that the administration's new interpretation of PRWORA is a departure from the "long-standing federal practice under both Republican and Democratic administrations." The policy change creates a major shift from previous federal practice by limiting access for undocumented immigrants, lawful visa holders, and even some U.S. citizens lacking formal documentation.
The Trump administration's latest policy change primarily affects working moms and their young children, as Bonta stated. The changes also threaten state safety net programs with loss of federal funding, creating an unworkable situation for state agencies and providers.
The lawsuit further alleges that the federal government misapplied PRWORA to entire programs rather than to individual benefits. This could result in the withdrawal of critical services for survivors of domestic violence, children, and people needing mental health services, as the Department of Justice withdrew its 2001 interpretation of PRWORA that protected these groups.
Attorney General Brown described the White House's authorization of this "chaotic reversal" as a deliberate attempt to damage vital support systems and intimidate vulnerable people. Bonta and Brown, along with the attorneys general of nearly two-dozen other states, are now asking a federal court to issue an injunction preventing the immigration and benefits-related guidance from being enforced.
This legal challenge by multiple states aims to stop the Trump administration’s reinterpretation of PRWORA that drastically limits public benefit access for immigrants and some citizens who cannot immediately verify their immigration status. The lawsuit seeks to uphold the long-standing federal practice of making critical services widely accessible to people in the country, as Congress designed these services to be.
- The ongoing politics surrounding policy-and-legislation has led to a legal challenge, as a group of state attorneys general, including California's Rob Bonta and Washington's Nick Brown, have filed a lawsuit to block the Trump administration's new restrictions on public benefits for immigrants under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA).
- The general-news reveals a lawsuit arguing that the Trump administration's latest policy change, primarily affecting working moms and their young children, misapplies PRWORA to entire programs rather than individual benefits, potentially causing the withdrawal of critical services for survivors of domestic violence, children, and people needing mental health services.
