Amid trans athletes spat, Maine sues USDA over freezing funds used to feed kids
The state of Maine filed a lawsuit Monday against the U.S. Department of Agriculture seeking injunctive relief after the department froze federal funds the state says it uses for food insecurity programs.
Maine has come into the national spotlight after Gov. Janet Mills clashed publicly with President Donald Trump over allowing transgender athletes to play sports.
Several federal agencies said they would investigate Maine as a result, but on April 2, USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins notified the state it would freeze some funding that goes to schools. Rollins said the state was violating Title IX by refusing to follow Trump's ban on trans women in sports.
Maine's state law prohibits schools from denying students equal opportunity to sports based on gender identity. The lawsuit claimed that funds for programs to help pay for food for kids and vulnerable adults were not accessible as a result of the freeze. The lawsuit alleged that freezing the funds was done without proper procedure, calling it "arbitrary and capricious."
Exchange with Trump and Maine governor goes viral
In February, Mills and Trump clashed in a viral moment at the meeting of the National Governors Association at the White House.
"Is Maine here? The governor of Maine?" Trump said, looking around for Mills at the event after saying the NCAA complied with this executive order on sports. "Are you not going to comply with it?"
"I'm complying with state and federal law," she said.
"Well, we are the federal law," Trump responded. "You better do it because you're not going to get any federal funding at all if you don't. And by the way, your population ‒ even though it's somewhat liberal, although I did very well there ‒ your population doesn't want men playing in women's sports."
"We're going to follow the law, sir," Mills said. "We'll see you in court."
"I look forward to that- that should be a real easy one," Trump spat back. "Enjoy your life after, governor, because I don't think you'll be in elected politics."
USDA froze funds for Maine's schools, prompting lawsuit
After this spat, a few federal agencies targeted Maine with investigations, the lawsuit states, naming actions taken by the Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights, the Department of Health and Human Services' Office for Civil Rights and Attorney General Pam Bondi.
On April 2, USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins issued a letter to Mills notifying her that the department was freezing federal funds for certain things in Maine schools.
"In addition, USDA has launched a full review of grants awarded by the Biden Administration to the Maine Department of Education," Rollins said in a statement posted to social media when the letter was sent. "USDA will not stand for the Biden Administration's bloated bureaucracy and will instead focus on a Department that is farmer-first and without a leftist agenda."
The lawsuit claimed the freeze has threatened programs that reimburse organizations like schools, childcare centers and after-school programs that give healthy meals to kids. The day after the letter was sent, the state was unable to access some accounts for these programs, the lawsuit states.
"Without access to funds in the cash in lieu and administrative funds account, providers will have to cease operations and children (and vulnerable adults) will not be fed", it reads, adding that the state does not have funds to replace those that have been frozen.
USDA did not immediately respond to Paste BN's request for comment.
Contributing: Joey Garrison; Reuters
Kinsey Crowley is a trending news reporter at Paste BN. Reach her at kcrowley@gannett.com. Follow her on X and TikTok @kinseycrowley or Bluesky at @kinseycrowley.bsky.social.