A federal judge temporarily blocked the Trump administration from cutting $600 million in public health grants to California, Colorado, Illinois, and Minnesota on Thursday, February 12, 2026, after finding the states likely to succeed in a lawsuit alleging the cuts were retaliation for their immigration policies.
U.S. District Judge Manish Shah, of the Northern Illinois District Court, issued a temporary restraining order halting the cuts for 14 days, as the legal challenge proceeds. The lawsuit, filed Wednesday, argued the administration’s attempt to rescind funding through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) was based on “arbitrary, capricious, or unconstitutional rationales.”
Judge Shah found that statements from administration officials “plausibly suggest that the reason for the direction is hostility to what the federal government calls ‘sanctuary jurisdictions’ or ‘sanctuary cities.’” The administration had publicly stated the cuts were due to programs not aligning with CDC priorities and promoting “DEI and radical gender ideology,” according to court filings and statements reported by the Associated Press.
The affected programs include those supporting HIV prevention and surveillance, as well as efforts to monitor and respond to disease outbreaks. Colorado stands to lose $22 million in federal funding, according to Colorado Sun reporting. California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s office stated that his state would bear the largest share of the cuts.
“The harm to plaintiffs from the loss of funding is irreparable and intangible — the loss of capacity to fund and maintain public health infrastructure puts the health of plaintiffs’ residents in jeopardy,” Judge Shah wrote in his order. He too noted that halting the cuts would not harm the public interest.
The Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees CDC spending, did not immediately respond to requests for comment, according to Reuters reporting.
Here’s not the first time the Trump administration has attempted to withhold funding from Democratic-led states. Last month, a judge temporarily blocked the administration from freezing more than $10 billion in federal funds to five states—including some of those involved in the current lawsuit—over alleged concerns about fraud in childcare and family assistance programs, the Associated Press reported.
California Attorney General Bonta released a statement praising the judge’s order, expressing confidence that the states would secure a permanent block of the funding cuts. A hearing is scheduled for February 18 to further consider the case.
