Overview

• Filed Friday in Oregon, the lawsuit seeks to preserve funding under the PREP and Title V Sexual Risk Avoidance Education programs while the case proceeds.
• Plaintiffs argue HHS exceeded its authority and violated the Administrative Procedure Act and Congress’ spending power, while HHS contends the PREP statute does not authorize instruction that separates gender identity from biological sex.
• HHS warned states in August that they had 60 days to remove what it calls “gender ideology” from curricula or risk losing grants, with notices reported to have gone to 46 states.
• The complaint says at least $35 million is at stake for the plaintiff jurisdictions, and California already lost a $12 million PREP grant on Aug. 21.
• Oregon, Washington and Minnesota are co-leading the case; Colorado announced it joined and called the threat “cruel, arbitrary, and illegal,” and HHS has not provided a substantive response.