Attorney General Kathy Jennings Thursday co-led a coalition of 23 attorneys general – joined by the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania – in filing an amended complaint in their lawsuit to prevent the dismantling of AmeriCorps.

In their new pleading, Jennings and the coalition challenge 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, Attorney General Jennings and the coalition won a court order that reinstated hundreds of AmeriCorps programs in the plaintiff states 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.

“Even after being beaten soundly in court, this administration is still trying to break the law by withholding funds for AmeriCorps,” said Attorney General Jennings. “Americorps has been a critical artery of American volunteering and humanitarian aid for generations, championing everything from literacy among our youth to boots-on-the-ground emergency relief when our communities have been brought to their knees by natural disasters. The administration’s strategy is apparently to end these humanitarian efforts despite a court ordering them to continue and hope that we’ll get tired of forcing them to stop. Fortunately for those who value the rule of law, that is not going to happen.”

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 Delaware, more than 1,300 AmeriCorps members and volunteers serve over 200 locations supporting schools, food banks, homeless shelters, libraries, veterans’ facilities, and other essential institutions. Their efforts not only fortify community resilience, but they also generate over $2.5 million in additional local resources through public-private partnerships.

The amended complaint 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, including in all three counties in Delaware. These programs pair low-income seniors with children in need of mentorship and support or with other seniors in need of companionship and care. The Delaware Foster Grandparent Program, established 59 years ago, is one of the original and longest-running foster grandparent programs in the country, and has volunteers who have served for 10, 20, and even 30 years or more.

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. And 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 alleges 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.

The lawsuit is co-led with Delaware’s AG Jennings by the attorneys general of Maryland, California, and Colorado, and is joined by the attorneys general of Arizona, Connecticut, the District of Colombia, Hawai‛i, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin, as well as the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania.

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