Donald Trump is out of office. Why is California still suing the former administration?
California filed more than 100 lawsuits against the Trump administration over various policies that the former president introduced, rolled back or implemented in office.
Many of them are closed. But others continue nearly a year after President Joe Biden defeated Trump in the 2020 election. The state is keeping some cases active because some Trump-era regulations could resurface or have lingering effects on Californians.
In one lawsuit, the Biden administration is siding with the former president regarding the use of private prisons for immigrant detention. California sought to ban them with a 2019 law signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom. The federal government is fighting to keep them open.
“These cases have real implications for California’s people, values and resources,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said in a statement to The Sacramento Bee. “That’s why my office is continuing to work to ensure that these unlawful policies meet an efficient and timely resolution, whether that be through new rulemaking, by court action or by some other means.”
These are where some of those suits stand.
Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals: California and several other states refiled a lawsuit against the Trump administration in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California last year after the former president tried to slash some protections for immigrants who were brought to the United States as children. The lawsuit followed a 2020 Supreme Court decision that found Trump’s effort to rescind the DACA program, which allows those immigrants to live here, was unlawful. A judge stayed California’s case, effectively ending it. President Joe Biden took several steps since taking office to strengthen DACA.
Immigrant detention centers: California filed a couple of lawsuits against the administration for its treatment of immigrants at the U.S. border with Mexico. One is ongoing, filed in a the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California’s West Division in 2019: It claims prolonged holding of children at migrant centers flouted a 1997 rule which established safety and sanitation standards for detention facilities. Trump had proposed building more centers that could hold children for longer periods of time.
Border wall funding: California has three open lawsuits in divisions of the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California against former Trump officials over his diversion of military funding to pay for construction of more barriers at the U.S.-Mexico border. Biden has been added to the lawsuits due to his taking over for the administration. Judges in these lawsuits have generally granted favorable decisions toward California throughout these cases despite a Supreme Court decision that allowed Trump to use funds for the wall in 2019.
Public charge rule: California, among other states, is suing former Trump officials for a rule that would have made obtaining citizenship more difficult for immigrants who rely on public aid for health care and housing. It was filed by the city and counties of San Francisco and Santa Clara in federal court and is now in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Withheld public safety money: California is suing the former Trump administration for withholding annual law enforcement grants because the state did not comply with a new Trump rule that restricted immigration. Trump previously tried to sue California for its “sanctuary city” policies, which designate areas where the state will not assist immigration control in finding undocumented immigrants, but the Supreme Court dismissed his lawsuit. It is ongoing in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Birth control access: The Trump administration tried to offer a religious or moral exemption to an Affordable Care Act rule that required employers to offer health plans with birth control; California sued in part of a larger lawsuit regarding the Affordable Care Act at the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California’s Oakland Division in 2017. Judges have prevented that exemption while the case regarding birth control is active. Trump had attempted to repeal the Affordable Care Act, implemented by former President Barack Obama, but California and other states sued and the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the states in 2020.
Sexual harassment in schools: The Trump-era Education Department tightened the meaning of sexual harassment under Title IX, making it harder for victims to file a claim. California’s litigation has paused while the Department of Education reviews the rule. The state sued alongside many others in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in 2020.
School nutrition: California is suing the Trump administration for relaxing nutrition standards for food offered at schools in the U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, having filed it alongside other states in 2019.
Postal delivery: The United States Postal Service altered operations that made mail slower during the pandemic and ahead of the 2020 presidential election, which relied heavily on mail-in ballots. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania blocked the changes while the suit continues.
Predatory lenders: California has a few ongoing lawsuits against parts of the Trump administration that eased regulations for different loan lenders, including schools and banks. They sued the Education Department for repealing an Obama-era rule that gave federal loans to students who were misled by for-profit schools in the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California; the rule was designed after the closure of Corinthian Colleges — school officials had lied about programs and graduation rates to entice students, ultimately trapping them in piles of loan debt.
Clean car rules: California filed two lawsuits against the former president over rules to relax vehicle emissions standards in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia which directly snapped at the state’s own strict rules. Judges stayed both of those lawsuits, effectively ending them. Biden rescinded Trump’s regulations and announced tighter electric vehicle goals this summer that follow California’s.
Clean air requirements: The Trump administration asked that the Environmental Protection Agency conduct a more thorough analysis before developing clean air regulations. California, among other states, argued that the more strenuous analysis would needlessly stall the creation of clean air rules. Arguments paused in the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia in while the agency works on broader changes, however the EPA dropped Trump’s recommendation. The suit was one of nine from California filed on Trump’s final day in office. Biden signed an executive order solidifying California’s clean air rules the next day.
Former California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said in a statement when one of those final lawsuits was filed that, “Today’s lawsuit should serve as a warning — day 1 or day 1460, we won’t let the Trump Administration’s unlawful actions go unchecked.”
Biden tapped Becerra to serve as the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services. Newsom replaced Becerra with Bonta.
This story was originally published October 28, 2021 at 9:20 AM.
