DENVER — The City and County of Denver is suing the Trump Administration over what it calls unlawful conditions tied to federal grant funding.
The joint lawsuit, filed Monday in conjunction with eight other major cities in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, challenges efforts by the Department of Human Services and FEMA to make funding contingent on cities aligning with the administration’s stance on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), according to a Tuesday news release from the city.
The lawsuit claims critical programs, including terrorism prevention, disaster response, and firefighter training, face funding cuts.
Mayor Mike Johnston said the administration is politicizing essential grants meant for public safety.
“President Trump is threatening to strip cities of critical funding for everything from fighting fires to protecting concertgoers at Red Rocks from serious threats,” said Mayor Mike Johnston in the news release. “These grants have nothing to do with diversity, equity, and inclusion and everything to do with this administration’s goal of inserting politics where none belong, and we will continue fighting for the services Denverites are entitled to receive as taxpayers.”
◼️ Denver7 has obtained a copy of the lawsuit, which you can read in the embed below.
Earlier this year, Denver successfully sued to restore funding under the Securing Our Cities program. Still, the city said federal officials later tied future reimbursements to DEI compliance, leading to Monday’s lawsuit.
The city has filed similar suits against the administration.
In July, Denver joined 50 other cities in filing a lawsuit against the administration for what it called “its unlawful and unconstitutional threats” to withhold federal funding over the city’s policies limiting cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
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