Attorney General Ford Challenges Trump Administration’s Withholding of Funds from National Volunteer Public Service Agency AmeriCorps

Carson City, NV — Today, Nevada Attorney General Aaron D. Ford announced he has filed a lawsuit, joined by 23 other attorneys general and the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania, challenging the White House Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) attempt to gut AmeriCorps by withholding tens of millions of dollars in funding for critical service programs.

In June, AG Ford and the coalition won a court order that reinstated hundreds of AmeriCorps programs that were unlawfully cancelled and barred AmeriCorps from making similar cuts without formal rulemaking. Despite this order, OMB is withholding vast sums intended for outstanding service programs, threatening their survival and the wellbeing of those who depend on their services. Because of the Trump administration’s withholding of these critical resources, the coalition has filed an amended lawsuit that adds OMB as a defendant and brings new legal claims against the agency.

“We have won in this matter already, and I am confident that the courts will continue to side with us going forward," said AG Ford. "While the president’s administration may hope that by ignoring this court order, they can make us go away, they are mistaken. I will never stop fighting to ensure the rule of law is followed at every level of our government, and to ensure vital programs that improve the lives of Nevadans are not put on the chopping block as part of a political game. These programs do real thing for our state’s residents — they are not just lines on a piece of a paper."

AmeriCorps, an independent federal agency that engages Americans in meaningful community-based service, provides opportunities for more than 200,000 Americans to serve their communities every year. AmeriCorps supports national and state community service programs by funding and placing volunteers in local and national organizations that address critical community needs. Organizations rely on support from AmeriCorps to recruit, place, and supervise AmeriCorps members nationwide.

In Nevada, AmeriCorps runs vital programs including educational programs in Las Vegas, Reno and Nevada’s rural areas. According to AmeriCorps’ own figures, between February 2024 and February 2025, the agency invested over $10.1 million in Nevada.

The lawsuit alleges that OMB has unlawfully withheld from plaintiff states well over $38 million in support intended for specific AmeriCorps programs, across multiple funding streams. For example, OMB appears to have withheld tens of millions of dollars intended for AmeriCorps Senior Companion Programs and Foster Grandparent Programs in plaintiff states, programs that pair low-income seniors with children in need of mentorship and support or with other seniors in need of companionship and care. The administration has also withheld approximately $5 million intended for plaintiff state service commissions, which was needed to provide training and technical assistance to service members across the country. While AmeriCorps decided to fund numerous programs in plaintiff states with over $33 million in highly competitive grants for the next service year, OMB is preparing to withhold these funds from distribution as well.

The coalition establishes that the Trump administration has acted unlawfully in its withholding of AmeriCorps funds, violating both the Administrative Procedures Act and the separation of powers under the U.S. Constitution. Congress created AmeriCorps and appropriated funding to support public service, and neither OMB nor AmeriCorps hold authority to defy Congress by refusing to distribute funds to worthy service programs.

In the lawsuit, AG Ford is joined by the lead attorneys general of Maryland, California, Colorado and Delaware, as well as the attorneys general of Arizona, Connecticut, the District of Colombia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota,, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin, and the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania.

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