A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction late Monday blocking the Trump administration from defunding reproductive and sexual health education programs unless those programs agreed to fully erase any acknowledgment of gender identity from their curricula. The ruling is the latest in a lawsuit filed by 16 states and the District of Columbia, which Attorney General Ellison co-led. The states sued the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in September alleging the administration was denying young people services for cruel and purely political reasons with no regard for the law.

"I’m pleased to have protected funding for important health education programs across Minnesota, which provide valuable information on topics like preventing the spread of sexually transmitted infections,” said Attorney General Ellison. “The Trump administration needs to learn they cannot hold our tax dollars hostage unless we go along with their politics of exclusion. Until they learn this lesson and follow the law, we will continue to meet them in court to protect our tax dollars, uphold the rule of law, and defend Minnesotans’ rights.”