Judge strikes down a Trump policy barring some immigrants from Head Start preschools
WASHINGTON (AP) — A federal judge in Rhode Island has struck down a Trump administration directive that would have barred some immigrants from accessing certain federal programs, including Head Start preschools, community health clinics and adult education initiatives.
U.S. District Judge Mary McElroy, who was appointed by President Donald Trump in 2019, temporarily barred his administration from moving forward with the rule last year, so it was never implemented. On Monday, she made the injunction permanent.
Officials from the Republican administration had said the directive would stop “illegal aliens” from accessing federal benefits by reclassifying broad swaths of social services programs under a Clinton-era law, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act.
But the rule also would have swept up many immigrants in the U.S. legally, including work and student visa holders. It also would have barred services from Temporary Protected Status holders, who are granted work permits if the U.S. government determines conditions in their home country are too dangerous to return, along with recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, who were brought to the country illegally as children and receive temporary protection from deportation and work authorization.
Those groups, which are considered “nonqualified aliens” under the law, are already unable to access full Medicaid benefits and federally funded food aid and cash assistance.
The Trump administration issued its directive in July 2025. Democratic attorneys general from 20 states and the District of Columbia sued.
http://apnews.com/article/head-start-preschool-immigrants-ruling-d3e6f286439e1e8456746bf9f0d9c24b?
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