Attorney General Anthony G. Brown announced that Maryland has joined 21 states and the District of Columbia in filing two amicus briefs supporting the Council for Opportunity in Education (COE) in lawsuits against the U.S. Department of Education (DOE). The filings challenge the DOE’s recent decisions to end funding for federal TRIO programs, which provide educational support for low-income, first-generation, and underrepresented students.
The amicus briefs, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, back COE’s efforts to prevent the DOE from discontinuing active TRIO grants and rejecting new Student Support Services (SSS) grant applications. The lawsuits argue that the DOE’s actions stem from new federal policies restricting diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.
The TRIO complaint contests the DOE’s decision not to continue dozens of active grants funded through 2026, while the SSS complaint challenges the retroactive denial of new grant applications submitted under prior 2024 guidelines. These denials have already caused several college and university programs nationwide to close.
The lawsuits claim that the DOE’s actions violate the U.S. Constitution, the Administrative Procedure Act, and Congressional intent behind the TRIO programs, which have existed for nearly 60 years.
According to Brown, TRIO programs previously served more than 12,500 Maryland students, offering academic and counseling support to help them access and complete college degrees.
Joining Maryland in the amicus briefs are attorneys general from Nevada, Massachusetts, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaiʻi, Illinois, Maine, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and the District of Columbia.
