The Trump administration cannot withhold federal emergency funding from Illinois because the state refuses to participate in federal immigration enforcement, a Rhode Island federal judge ruled on Wednesday.
President Donald Trump signed an executive order in January requiring the Department of Homeland Security and agencies under its command, such as the Federal Emergency Management Agency, to stop providing federal funds to states that don’t cooperate with federal immigration enforcement.
The move was designed to force states like Illinois to abandon laws that prohibit law enforcement from participating in civil immigration enforcement. Trump’s order could have applied to hundreds of millions of dollars of federal funding Illinois receives for natural disaster responses and other emergencies. But a judge ruled it unconstitutional after Illinois and other states sued.
“I appreciate the court’s conclusion that DHS’ decision-making process was ‘wholly under-reasoned and arbitrary,’” Attorney General Kwame Raoul said in a statement. “The court’s ruling will ensure vital dollars that states rely on to prepare for and respond to emergencies are not withheld simply for political purposes.”
The 2017 TRUST Act, signed by Republican Gov. Bruce Rauner, prohibits Illinois law enforcement from arresting a person based solely on their immigration status. In most cases, law enforcement cannot assist immigration officials with detaining people based solely on immigration status, according to Raoul’s office.
The judge ruled that the order violates the Constitution because Congress controls spending. The attorneys general filed the suit in the U.S. District Court of Rhode Island.
“Sweeping immigration-related conditions imposed on every DHS-administered grant, regardless of statutory purpose, lack the necessary tailoring,” U.S. District Judge William E. Smith wrote. “The Spending Clause requires that conditions be “reasonably calculated” to advance the purposes for which funds are expended … and DHS has failed to demonstrate any such connection outside of a few programs.”
Abortion funding
Raoul also filed a new motion on Wednesday alongside 21 other states and Washington, D.C., that seeks to stop a new federal law from blocking funding to Planned Parenthood and other health care facilities that provide abortion services.
The attorneys general originally filed the lawsuit at the end of July to challenge a provision in congressional Republicans’ “One Big Beautiful Bill” that prohibits abortion clinics from using Medicaid funding for reproductive health services for one year.
The attorneys general argue the timeline of the law and details about which providers are included is too vague.
“We are urging the court to halt enforcement of the Defund Provision, which is clearly intended to shutter Planned Parenthood,” Raoul said in a statement. “Planned Parenthood facilities play a key role in our nation’s health and wellness by providing preventative care to more than 1 million Americans.”
The motion comes as Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin announced Wednesday that it will pause scheduling abortions because of the bill, causing fears for Illinois abortion providers about a surge in demand. Wisconsin Attorney General Joshua Kaul is also part of the lawsuit.
Capitol News Illinois is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news service that distributes state government coverage to hundreds of news outlets statewide. It is funded primarily by the Illinois Press Foundation and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation.
This article appears in September 25-October 1, 2025.
Happy Friday!
Wow, I’ve got my very own impersonator! Amazing!
Just so my legions of dedicated fans understand, the way you know whether or not you are reading a real Burger Addict post is if I’m mocking the democrats. If I’m not mocking the democrats, it’s not the real Burger Addict, it’s an impostor.
Now, as for the article. The article writes,
““Planned Parenthood facilities play a key role in our nation’s health and wellness by providing preventative care to more than 1 million Americans.””
It’s amazing how on every topic under the sun, the democrats have inverted reality. Mommies killing their own babies is called “health and wellness”.
The article writes,
“The motion comes as Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin announced Wednesday that it will pause scheduling abortions because of the bill, causing fears for Illinois abortion providers about a surge in demand.”
Why would abortion providers fear having more customers? Their life’s work is killing unborn children – surely killing more unborn babies should make them happier, no?
Abortion is bad. Have you ever listened to the wind? Every child is a baby…..and yiu must not sin. My grundle is very risky but so is yours. Tainted glory is risky….Hot dog enjoyer….listen to me…be nice to people don’t be a BU L L Y!!!!°
They literally let criminals run rampant to do what they do best, commit crime, and then cheer it on. What happened to “equity”? Typical lib logic – don’t make a shit’s worth of sense But at the same time, if the candidate is Newsom or whomever then the same applies.You’ve got to admire how shameless Pritzker is. They throw around a bunch of words to frighten people into thinking they are the saviors of the world No rational person can believe that Democrats are better on crime and immigration.The guy has the ability to say absolutely anything. If lying were an olympic sport, this guy could win the gold medal. Luckily for him, the democrat voters are so checked out and/or delusional that he will continue to get away with it. For example, pretend to be against abortion if it helps you to get elected, and then vote f
or abortion when you get in office.
H ELP M E I LO VE TH EIt’s not that culture war. They reacted and removed him, when we know previously they would have not. Football Why would abortion providers fear having more customersstadiums and corporations honoring rticle writes,
“The motion comes as Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin announced Wednesday that it will pause sc just prove that we are on the right side of history It’s only a matter he infuriated g how on every topic under the sun, the democrats have inverted reality. causing fears for Illinois abortion providers about a surge in demandkilling their own ba, as the article says, we don’t watch his show, it’s that he inf example, pretend to be against abortion if it helps you to get elected, and then vote for abortion whuriated his viewers.
If the money has been appropriated by Congress for a specific purpose then it can not be withheld from the states. The exception to this is if the states have violated federal law.