Federal judge blocks USDA plan to tie food aid to gender and immigration policies

A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction Friday that blocks the U.S. Department of Agriculture from conditioning food assistance on compliance with administration policies on gender and immigration. Twenty states and the District of Columbia filed the lawsuit in March in U.S. District Court in Massachusetts. The states argued the funding conditions are vague and exceed federal law.

Lawsuit details The suit covers roughly $74 billion in annual USDA grants, including school lunch programs serving 30 million children and food stamps supporting about 40 million low-income Americans. States said the conditions leave them with an unlawful choice between accepting the rules or losing the funding.

The USDA did not cite any statute authorizing the agency to impose anti-discrimination policies beyond existing federal law, the complaint states. The funding conditions address gender ideology, women’s sports participation, and immigration enforcement.

Prior funding disputes Last year the administration canceled a sexual education grant to California after the state declined to remove references to gender identity from its curriculum. The administration has also moved to restrict federal funds for states that allow transgender athletes in women’s sports.

California’s attorney general said the state would continue to challenge the conditions in court. California’s budget relies on $174.5 billion in federal dollars, about one-third of total state spending. U.S. District Judge Myong Joun approved the preliminary injunction and is expected to issue a written memorandum explaining the ruling.