Minneapolis and eight other local governments have filed a federal lawsuit against the Trump administration, accusing it of attempting to use disaster aid as leverage to push its political agenda.
Filed on October 20 in federal court in Illinois, the case centers on approximately $100 million in Homeland Security and FEMA grants that fund emergency management programs nationwide. According to city officials, Minneapolis receives roughly $3.6 million of that total, which supports most positions in the city’s Emergency Management Department and funds essential police and fire equipment.
City leaders say the administration’s new conditions on these funds would force local governments to abandon diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives and comply with unrelated executive orders or risk losing critical resources.
“Minneapolis is proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with cities across the country to say loud and clear: you can’t threaten our safety to force your politics,” Mayor Jacob Frey said in a statement. “Disaster relief and emergency preparedness should never be conditional on abandoning the very values that make our city strong.”
The lawsuit, led by the City of Chicago, argues that the administration’s conditions exceed executive authority and violate constitutional protections. Plaintiffs include Baltimore, Boston, Denver, Minneapolis, New York City, New Haven, Ramsey County, and Saint Paul.
Jill Habig, founder and CEO of Public Rights Project, which is supporting the case, called the move part of a broader pattern. “We’ve seen this playbook before from the Trump administration – weaponizing federal funding to bully local governments into abandoning policies that keep people safe,” Habig said.
City officials warn that losing the grants would have real consequences. In Minneapolis, it would undermine the city’s ability to respond to mass shootings, natural disasters, cyberattacks, and public health emergencies. In Chicago, about $6 million supports 47 police positions dedicated to transit security. Denver relies on $4 million for regional preparedness, while New York City uses $12 million to protect its transit system from terrorism and disasters.
Without these funds, communities might have to divert their limited resources to other purposes, delay or cancel safety projects, which would increase the risk to residents and infrastructure in several states.
This marks Minneapolis’ third lawsuit against the Trump administration in defense of federal funding and local governance. The city is also preparing to defend itself in a separate case filed in September challenging its “Welcoming City” policies for immigrants and refugees.
