Colorado joins lawsuits against the Trump administration over illegal immigration conditions placed on billions in emergency services and infrastructure projects

May 13, 2025 (DENVER) – Attorney General Phil Weiser, with a coalition of 19 attorneys general, today filed two separate lawsuits against the Trump administration for attempting to illegally coerce their states into sweeping immigration enforcement by threatening to withhold billions in federal funding for emergency services and infrastructure projects.

One lawsuit is against the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Secretary Kristi Noem. The second lawsuit is against the U.S. Department of Transportation and Secretary Sean Duffy. Each agency has imposed sweeping new conditions that would require the states and state agencies to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement efforts or lose out on billions of federal dollars that states use to protect public safety and transportation infrastructure.

“We are bringing these lawsuits to prevent the Trump administration from trying to strong-arm the states into doing federal immigration enforcement by threatening to cut off billions of dollars in transportation and disaster funding if we refuse to comply. In Colorado, we make the decisions on how our law enforcement resources are used here. In this case, the funds that Congress directed to the states have nothing to do with immigration enforcement and the federal government has no authority to condition Colorado’s access to such funds in this manner,” said Attorney General Weiser. “We’re committed to defending Colorado’s share of federal funding and challenging DHS and DOT’s effort to make an end run around Congress and the law.”

In February, Secretary Noem directed DHS and its sub-agencies, including FEMA, to cease federal funding to jurisdictions that do not assist the federal government in the enforcement of federal immigration law. In March, DHS amended the terms and conditions it places on federal funds to require recipients to certify that they will assist in enforcing federal immigration law.

Soon after Noem’s decision, Transportation Secretary Duffy issued a letter to grant recipients informing them of his intent to require all state and local governments to assist in federal immigration enforcement as a condition of obtaining DOT funds. Those funds include grants for highway construction, public transportation maintenance, and competitive funds for airport and railway improvement.

In recent weeks, state grant applicants have seen similar immigration-enforcement language added to the terms and conditions governing grants administered by the Federal Railroad Administration, the Federal Highway Administration and the Federal Transit Administration.

In their lawsuits, the coalition points out that attaching the immigration conditions to FEMA and DOT funding exceeds the federal government’s legal authority. The coalition further explains that the conditions are unconstitutional because Congress appropriated billions of federal dollars to help states prepare for, protect against, respond to and recover from catastrophic disasters, and to support critical infrastructure projects.

The safety and well-being of Americans could be at risk if states are forced to forfeit federal emergency preparedness and response funds. Since 2017, Colorado has received $143,121,862 in disaster relief funds from FEMA. Last year, Colorado received more than $26 million in federal funds from DHS for emergency management, to prevent and protect against acts of terrorism, manage and reduce cyber threats, and increase security for nonprofits—such as houses of worship, museums, and community centers—that are at risk of an extremist attack.

In addition, Colorado relies on more than $1 billion in DOT money annually to fund highway, transit, and airport improvement projects, as well as to prevent injuries and fatalities from traffic accidents.

Read the lawsuit filed against DHS and Sec. Noem (PDF).

Read the lawsuit filed against DOT and Sec. Duffy (PDF).

Joining Attorney General Weiser in filing the lawsuits are attorneys general from California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, Wisconsin and Vermont.

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Media Contact:
Lawrence Pacheco
Chief Communications Officer
(720) 508-6553
lawrence.pacheco@coag.gov