California Attorney General Bonta Moves to Enforce Court Order Protecting School Mental Health Grant Funding

California AG Rob Bonta leads a 16-state coalition to force the Department of Education to honor full-year school mental health grants per court order.

By: AXL Media

Published: Mar 18, 2026, 11:06 AM EDT

Source: Information for this report was sourced from State of California Department of Justice

Legal Challenge to Restricted Educational Grant Distributions

California Attorney General Rob Bonta, alongside a coalition of 15 other attorneys general, has filed a formal motion in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington to enforce a standing judicial order. The coalition asserts that the U.S. Department of Education is failing to comply with a December 19, 2025, ruling that declared the unlawful discontinuation of school mental health programs. According to the filing, the federal government’s recent decision to award only six months of funding, rather than the standard full year, directly threatens the viability of essential student services.

Operational Burdens Imposed on Educational Grantees

The legal motion highlights that the Department of Education is implementing new, administrative hurdles that complicate the funding process for state and local agencies. According to Attorney General Bonta, these requirements include complex reimbursement forms typically reserved for cases of financial mismanagement and the demand for premature performance reports. The coalition argues these "unnecessary hoops" serve as a functional equivalent to the original grant cancellations, hindering the ability of schools to plan budgets and retain staff for the upcoming fall semester.

Legislative Origins and the Push for Campus Safety

The funding in question stems from the Mental Health Service Professional Demonstration Grant Program and the School-Based Mental Health Services Grant Program, established by Congress between 2018 and 2020. These initiatives were created in response to school shooting tragedies with the specific goal of placing 14,000 additional mental health professionals in American schools. According to the lawsuit, the Trump Administration targeted these specific grants for cancellation in early 2025, citing conflicts with federal priorities and perceived diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts within the programs.