The tussle between state governments and the Trump Administration intensifies as a coalition of attorneys general, including Arizona's Attorney General Kris Mayes, have moved to sue over the latest strife involving federal funding for medical and public health research. The litigation, aimed at the National Institutes of Health (NIH), calls out the Administration for what has been described as unlawful delays and cancellations of grants. This comes in the wake of Attorney General Mayes joining 16 states in the legal fray, showcasing a united front against the federal government's actions.
At the heart of the issue are the NIH grant processes, which, under normal circumstances, go through a double-tiered review. The Trump Administration has been accused of intentionally putting these procedures on ice, having cancelled review meetings and failed to set dates for future ones. This has put a serious kink in the pipeline, preventing potentially billions in research funding from reaching waiting states, including Arizona. According to a statement, the NIH has also axed swathes of previously approved grants, leaving projects related to DEI and transgender issues, among others, in the lurch.
The complaint filed by the states lays out the significant harm their public research institutions have suffered due to these delays and terminations. Arizona, for instance, has seen critical projects in cancer research and infectious disease control hit roadblocks, causing disruption and delay. The attorneys general argue that by halting these processes, the NIH is not living up to its statutory responsibilities and is breaching regulations. Moreover, they assert the Administration has overstepped its bounds by not disbursing the funds as appropriated by Congress.
The lawsuit seeks to force the Administration's hand to speedily review and decide on the delayed grant applications, and to prevent any more grants from being unfairly terminated. This legal action isn't the only front on which AG Mayes has confronted the Administration; joining a coalition of 22 attorneys general previously, she fought against cuts on "indirect cost" reimbursements for NIH grants. That particular battle saw a federal judge issue a preliminary injunction to temporarily halt the Administration's attempts as the case continues through court.
The current lawsuit against the NIH was spearheaded by a group of attorney generals, including Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell, California Attorney General Rob Bonta, Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown, and Washington Attorney General Nick Brown. They represent a portion of the coalition that spans across states such as Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Wisconsin.
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