Rhode Island Attorney General Peter Neronha and his counterparts in New York and Hawaii are the lead plaintiffs in a complaint filed Friday against the Trump administration seeking to stop the dismantling of three federal agencies that support public libraries and museums, workers, and small businesses.
In all, 20 Democratic attorneys general are participating in the April 4 lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Providence challenging a portion of a March 14 executive order targeting seven agencies, including three mandated by Congress: the Institute of Museum and Library Services; the Minority Business Development Agency and the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service.
The executive order placed almost the entire staff of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) on administrative leave and will mean cutting hundreds of grants for state libraries and museums. The executive order also slashed the labor organizing staff and programs of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) and forced the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) to cut its grant programs that support small business owners.
“This order continues the reduction in the elements of the Federal bureaucracy that the President has determined are unnecessary,” President Donald Trump wrote.
“As the President and his Administration continue their attempts to dismantle the federal government, Americans would do well to consider their priorities,” Neronha said. “What do these three agencies have in common? At first glance, maybe little. But if you take a closer look, you may realize that all three agencies empower everyday people in this country to access their full potential, whether it be through knowledge, workers’ rights, or small business support. By unlawfully attacking these agencies, they are attempting to stifle the American dream. We won’t let them, and neither should you.”
IMLS administers the Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA) which last year invested $180 million in libraries nationwide under its Grants to States Program. The Rhode Island Office of Library and Information Services (OLIS) received over $1.4 million in fiscal year 2025.
The funding supported core services and programs for Rhode Island libraries, including the Talking Books Library program for blind and print-disabled Rhode Islanders, the statewide summer reading program, statewide interlibrary book delivery services, and funding for nearly half of the state’s OLIS staff positions, according to a statement from the Rhode Island Library Association.
“The Rhode Island Library Association opposes the cutting of federal funding to IMLS and stands in support of IMLS, museums and libraries nationwide,” the association wrote. “RILA also strongly opposes the reduction of IMLS staff to a level that makes it unable to fulfill its statutory duties. As library workers, we are concerned about the implications that the elimination of IMLS funding and staffing will have on Rhode Island libraries and its residents.”
The FMCS has slashed its staff from roughly 200 to fewer than 15 individuals and announced the termination of several of its core programs, making it harder for unionized workers to secure their rights, according to the lawsuit.
By unlawfully attacking these agencies, they are attempting to stifle the American dream. We won’t let them, and neither should you.
Many of Rhode Island’s collective bargaining agreements rely on mediation through FMCS, which slashed its staff from about 200 to fewer than 15 individuals. DCYF and one of its unions used the services of FMCS last year, avoiding a strike that could have compromised DCYF’s ability to ensure stability and security for children in their care.
The Trump administration has cut the number of MBDA staff from 40 to five and has effectively stopped issuing new grants, hurting vulnerable small businesses across the country. The MBDA provides many valuable services to Rhode Island’s small businesses, including one-on-one guidance and expertise on business strategies and resources, Neronha’s office said. The MBDA also provides grants for incubators such as Rhode Island’s Small Business HUB.
The coalition argues the executive order violates the Constitution and the Administrative Procedure Act by eliminating the programs of agencies without any regard for the laws and regulations that govern each source of federal funding. The AGs say the president cannot decide to unilaterally override laws governing federal spending, adding that the executive order unconstitutionally overrides Congress’ power to decide how federal funds are spent.
The two other lead plaintiffs in the lawsuit are Attorney General Letitia James of New York and Attorney General Anne Lopez of Hawaii. Joining the lawsuit are the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin.
“We had to sue to stop Trump from defunding our schools and cancer cures, from defunding energy assistance and vaccines, from defunding disaster relief and the police. Now, we have to sue again to stop him from defunding summer reading programs and audiobooks for disabled veterans,” Connecticut Attorney General William Tong said in a report by Connecticut Mirror.
The Connecticut State Library receives $2.2 million in annual funding from IMLS, Tong said.
The other four agencies affected by the president’s executive order but not the subject of the lawsuit are the United States Agency for Global Media, the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars in the Smithsonian Institution, the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, and the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund.
This story was originally published by the Rhode Island Current.
