Maine sues to unfreeze US funds for kids, disabled adults amid trans sports spat

The state of Maine is suing the U.S. Department of Agriculture and its leader over funding for feeding children and disabled adults frozen amid a spat between the state and federal governments over transgender girls competing in girls' high school sports.

Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey sued the USDA and Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins in federal court, asking that a judge stop them from holding back congressionally appropriated funding over allegations of Title IX violations without going through standard regulations involving things like a hearing.

"Under the banner of keeping children safe, the Trump Administration is illegally withholding grant funds that go to keeping children fed," Frey said in a news release. "This is just another example where no law or consequence appears to restrain the administration as it seeks capitulation to its lawlessness. The President and his cabinet secretaries do not make the law and they are not above the law, and this action is necessary to remind the President that Maine will not be bullied into violating the law."

When the USDA announced the funding freeze last week, it noted that it wouldn't "impact federal feeding programs or direct assistance to citizens; if a child was fed today, they will be fed tomorrow." That language was repeated in a letter Rollins wrote to Gov. Janet Mills.

"You cannot openly violate federal law against discriminations in education and expect federal funding to continue unabated. Your defiance of federal law has cost your state, which is bound by Title IX in educational programming," the letter began.

The legal fight comes after President Donald Trump issued an executive order mandating the federal government "review grants to education programs and, where appropriate, rescind funding to programs that fail to comply with the policy" protecting women "as a matter of safety, fairness, dignity, and truth."

A Trump administration investigation into Maine schools led to a confrontation between the president and Gov. Janet Mills earlier this year. At a White House reception with the country's governors, he brought up the issue, telling Mills that the state had to comply or it won't get federal funding.

"We'll see you in court," Mills replied, leading Trump to say, "Good, I'll see you in court. I look forward to that. That should be a real easy one. And enjoy your life after governor because I don’t think you’ll be in elected politics."

Trump has demanded an apology from Mills, which she has not extended.

Rollins said in her letter last week that the USDA had "launched a full review of grants awarded by the Biden Administration to the Maine Department of Education," claiming that "many of these grants appear to be wasteful, redundant, or otherwise against the priorities of the Trump Administration."

"USDA will not extend the Biden Administration's bloated bureaucracy and will instead focus on a Department that is farmer-first and without a leftist social agenda," she wrote.

The federal government said Maine has until April 11 to sign a resolution of agreement or it will send the case to the Justice Department, which could result in the termination of federal funding for the state's education department. School officials previously said they would not comply with the agreement.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has already referred Maine to the Justice Department over the Title XI compliance.