Trump Sued Over Immigration Rules Tied to Victim Aid Grants

The Trump administration is unlawfully requiring states to assist with federal immigration enforcement efforts in order to receive grants that fund resources for crime victims, 20 states and Washington, DC, said in a lawsuit Monday.

That new condition attached to the grants, totaling more than $1 billion for fiscal year 2025, is a “brazen attempt to manipulate critical funding” and “strong-arm States into supporting the Administration’s immigration policies” that violates the separation of powers, the states said in a complaint filed in the US District Court for the District of Rhode Island.

The administration is facing several other lawsuits over recently-attached conditions on various federal grants to states, including programs that fund services for sexual assault victims, efforts to reduce homelessness, and improve public transit.

The Victims of Crime Act provides states funding for resources to support victims of crimes and their families, including emergency shelter and medical or funeral expenses. Based on the statutory formulas, the plaintiff states—which include New Jersey, California, and New Mexico—are entitled to roughly $675 million.

The Office for Victims of Crime, which is housed within the US Department of Justice and administers the grants, allegedly imposed a policy refusing to provide funds unless recipients agree to “broadly support and assist federal immigration enforcement” by the US Department of Homeland Security. Recipients must agree to provide DHS “unfettered access” and grant “any and all” agency requests. Although the conditions are vague, the states say, they appear to require states to give DHS access to and information about victims the states engage with that the agency is targeting.

But the conditions are the “type of federal ‘direction, supervision, or control’ over state police and criminal justice agencies” that federal law prohibits, the states assert. And “nothing in VOCA or any other statute” authorizes DOJ to impose immigration-related conditions on the grants. The new policy would “impose unprecedented conditions on the use of VOCA funds,” requiring states to help DHS in “unrelated immigration enforcement efforts,” the complaint says.

The states also argue that immigrants are less willing to engage with law enforcement if it could risk deportation. Several of the plaintiff states have policies to ensure that an immigrant can engage with law enforcement when they’re victims or witnessed a crime without fear of deportation with some exceptions, including assisting federal officials to facilitate the removal of violent individuals.

The states allege they’re forced to either forfeit funding or agree to comply with unlawful conditions. Funding applications are due Aug. 20.

The states assert violations of the Administrative Procedure Act, the spending clause, and separation of powers. They’re seeking injunctive relief barring the administration from implementing or enforcing the immigration conditions against the plaintiff states.

The DOJ declined to comment. The Office for Victims of Crime didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

The case is State of N.J. v. US Dep’t of Just., D.R.I., No. 1:25-cv-00404, complaint filed 8/18/25.