California Sues to Stop Trump from Using Public Safety Funding to Pressure States on Elections

SACRAMENTO – Gov. Gavin Newsom July 23 announced, in partnership with Attorney General Rob Bonta, that California is leading a multistate lawsuit to block unlawful federal attempts to condition public safety funding on political demands tied to elections. California will not accept the use of federal dollars meant to keep people safe as leverage to pressure states on how they run free and fair elections. 

“President Trump has little support for both his mass deportation agenda and his baseless claims of election fraud, so instead, he’s trying to bully state and local governments into adopting his preferred policies in exchange for much-needed funding,” said Attorney General Bonta. “The Administration has already lost similar fights in court, and we expect this latest unlawful attempt to fail as well. Our communities deserve better than to have essential resources caught up in political games.”

About the grants

The funding that is at stake is an annual $150 million in congressionally approved public safety funds, administered by the Department of Homeland Security or DHS and the Federal Emergency Management Agency or FEMA to help states and their cities prevent, mitigate, respond to, and recover from acts of terrorism and other catastrophic security incidents. 

Most people do not know this funding by its formal name — the Homeland Security Grant Program (HSGP) — but they know what it pays for. California is suing to safeguard the funding that supports state-level efforts to help train first responders, strengthen cybersecurity, improve emergency communications, buy critical equipment, and help public agencies prepare for serious threats. 

Money meant to keep people safe should not be turned into a political weapon.

About the lawsuit

The coalition of states suing argues that the Trump administration’s requirements are unlawful because Congress never gave DHS or FEMA authority to impose sweeping conditions on these federal grants, the agencies failed to follow required decision-making procedures, and the requirements violate the Spending Clause by coercing States through vague and ambiguous funding conditions that are entirely unrelated to the purposes of the funding programs.

This lawsuit is part of a broader effort to push back on attempts to interfere with California’s election administration. In May, Gov. Newsom signed Senate Bill 73 to strengthen California’s election protections, including tighter safeguards around ballots, voting technology, and interference by law enforcement in the election process.