Attorney General Phil Weiser joins second lawsuit to prevent federal cuts to school mental health grants

July 10, 2026 (DENVER) – Attorney General Phil Weiser today joined a coalition of 15 attorneys general filing a lawsuit to prevent the U.S. Department of Education from unlawfully terminating congressionally approved school-based mental health grants. In defiance of a court order, the administration plans to terminate these grants at the end of July, which is projected to cost Colorado schools and universities nearly $10 million in funding.

“The Education Department is playing clever word games to get around a court order prohibiting the department from unlawfully ending school-based mental health grants to the states. This funding is critical for Colorado school districts and universities to address a shortage of school-based mental health care professionals and to reduce turnover and improve the well-being and academic success of students. The administration needs to stop dragging its feet. That’s why we are filing this second lawsuit to make sure they provide these important mental health grants,” said Attorney General Weiser.

In the wake of devastating school shootings, members of Congress from both parties came together to provide $1 billion to permanently bring 14,000 mental health professionals into U.S. schools most in need, especially in low-income and rural communities. The programs have been a success. In their first year, the programs provided mental and behavioral health services to nearly 775,000 elementary and secondary students nationwide with real results: a 50% reduction in suicide risk at high-need schools, decreases in absenteeism and behavioral issues, and increases in positive student-staff engagement.

In April 2025, the department notified grantees in Colorado and the other coalition states that their grants would be discontinued for allegedly conflicting with the Trump administration’s new priorities. The department later revealed the grants had been targeted for their perceived support for diversity, equity, and inclusion.

In July 2025, Attorney General Weiser joined the coalition in filing a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington against the department over the discontinuation of the grants. In December 2025, the coalition secured an order declaring the department’s discontinuations were unlawful and requiring it to make new continuation decisions. The court also issued a permanent injunction that prohibited the department from implementing the discontinuations “through any means.”

The department has admitted most of the grants should have been continued, but they have nonetheless engaged in an ongoing campaign to hinder, threaten, and ultimately try to eliminate the mental health grants in Colorado and the other coalition states. Although the department issued continuation awards through December 31, 2026, the department only provided funding for six months, making planning difficult because grantees do not know how much funding they will get for the fall. The department also threatened not to provide funding for the second half of the year and are making grantees jump through unnecessary hoops to access funds—diverting resources and staff from supporting student mental health to filling out unnecessary paperwork.

The department claimed it planned to review the grants at the six-month mark and then make additional funding determinations. But instead, the department has targeted the grants protected by the original injunction and announced they plan to terminate the grants altogether. By calling this a termination rather than a discontinuation, the administration seeks to sidestep the court’s order, which required them to follow the law with respect to these important mental health grants. Although the state coalition continues to fight this attempt to circumvent the court’s order, they have filed this new lawsuit to prevent these planned terminations and cover any gaps that would threaten these critical grants.

The attorneys general allege that the Department of Education’s plan to terminate the mental health grants violate the Administrative Procedure Act and the U.S. Constitution. The attorneys general have moved for a preliminary injunction to prevent the grants from being terminated.

Attorney General Weiser joins the attorneys general of California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington and Wisconsin in filing the lawsuit.

Read a copy of the complaint (PDF) and the emergency motion for expedited preliminary injunction (PDF).

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