San Francisco v. Trump

On Feb. 7, 2025, a coalition of local governments filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration to protect sanctuary jurisdictions from federal overreach of immigration enforcement.

The coalition is led by the City and County of San Francisco and Santa Clara County, Calif. The original plaintiffs also included King County, Wash., and the City of New Haven, Conn.

Sanctuary laws and policies ensure city and state resources are prioritized for local law enforcement and public safety. However, recent executive orders issued by the Trump administration instruct federal agencies to cut off federal funding to sanctuary jurisdictions. The U.S. Department of Justice also directed its personnel to investigate and prosecute sanctuary city officials who refuse to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement.

The lawsuit argues that forcing local governments to aid in immigration enforcement violates the 10th Amendment and other constitutional protections, including the separation of powers.

On Feb. 27, 2025, 11 more plaintiffs joined the lawsuit from the following jurisdictions in California: Emeryville, Monterey County, Oakland, Sacramento, San Diego, San Jose, Santa Cruz, as well as Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minn., Santa Fe, N. Mex, and Seattle, Wash.

Public Rights Project is representing the Cities of Minneapolis, New Haven, Portland, St. Paul, Santa Fe, and Seattle.

Update:
On March 17, 2025, the coalition filed a request for a preliminary injunction against the Trump administration, seeking to block its efforts to withhold, freeze, or put conditions on federal funds for sanctuary jurisdictions. The coalition argues that recent executive orders and a sanctuary jurisdiction directive memo violate the Constitution’s separation of powers, the Spending Clause, and the 5th Amendment.

As part of their request, the coalition submitted 36 declarations from members explaining how federal funding is essential for providing and maintaining public services in their communities. 

Read the request.

On April 23, Oakland Deputy City Attorney and former PRP fellow Karun Tilak asked the court to issue a preliminary injunction. The following day, the judge granted the preliminary injunction saying the cities and counties demonstrated a likelihood of irreparable harm in the form of budgetary uncertainty, “depravation of constitutional rights,” and undermining trust between the local governments and the communities they serve.

Read the decision.