Students stroll past Royce Hall on the UCLA campus in Los Angeles on Aug. 15, 2024.
Damian Dovarganes/AP
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Damian Dovarganes/AP
LOS ANGELES — A federal judge has mandated the Trump administration to reinstate $500 million in federal grant funding previously halted at the University of California, Los Angeles.
U.S. District Judge Rita Lin in San Francisco issued a preliminary injunction on Monday, indicating the government likely breached the Administrative Procedure Act by failing to provide the required protocols and rationale for federal funding reductions. Instead, the administration sent UCLA vague correspondence indicating that several grants from different agencies were suspended without any detailed explanations.
In August, UCLA disclosed that the Trump administration had suspended $584 million in federal grants due to accusations of civil rights violations surrounding antisemitism and affirmative action.
Lin later ruled that $81 million in grants from the National Science Foundation should be restored to UCLA, as those cuts violated a June preliminary injunction requiring the NSF to reinstate several grants previously terminated at the University of California, which has 10 campuses throughout the state.
The White House did not provide an immediate response to an email from The Associated Press seeking comment on Monday’s decision.
The Trump administration has leveraged its control of federal funding to advocate for changes at prestigious universities, which the president claims are overwhelmed by leftist ideologies and antisemitism. The administration has also initiated investigations into diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, alleging that they discriminate against white and Asian American students.
Columbia and Brown, both Ivy League schools, worked out agreements to maintain funding delayed by the Trump administration under similar accusations that they had insufficiently addressed campus antisemitism.
Regarding Harvard, which contested the funding cuts with a lawsuit, a federal judge ruled in early September that the suspension of funds constituted illegal retaliation for Harvard’s refusal to comply with the Trump administration’s requests.
The Trump administration previously suggested resolving its investigation into UCLA with a $1 billion payment from the institution. California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat, deemed it an extortion attempt.
UCLA has stated that such a vast payment would “devastate” the school.
Monday’s ruling pertains to numerous medical research grants from the National Institutes of Health that involve research on Parkinson’s disease treatment, cancer recovery, nerve cell regeneration, and other areas that university officials assert are crucial for enhancing the health of Americans.
