The U.S. Department of Education should not limit schools’ abilities to support students’ mental health needs and create a bureaucratic mess for districts seeking grant funding, 18 attorneys general warn in a new multistate comment letter submitted to the department Monday by the Washington State Attorney General’s Office.

The letter calls attention to the department’s proposed changes to its School-Based Mental Health Services Grant Program and Mental Health Service Professional Demonstration Grant Program. Following mass shootings at schools in Parkland, Fla., and Uvalde, Texas, Congress funded these programs, providing mental health services in high-need schools, through 2026. Among other actions, the changes would further implement the department’s illegal decision to discontinue previously awarded grants – an action Washington state filed suit over earlier this year that is still in court.

These changes would unnecessarily limit the services school psychologists can offer; apply vague and unclear conditions to these awards; and impose requirements that may conflict with grantees’ existing obligations under federal law.

“These changes essentially say school counselors and social workers can’t support student mental health, a nonsensical approach that limits the tools we have to help kids succeed. The proposals may also limit resources for students who don’t speak English or who are gender diverse – despite the department’s obligation to improve the safety and well-being of all students.” – AG Nick Brown