The Maine Attorney General said the Trump administration and Maine have reached an agreement that they have restored funds for school children.
State Attorney General Aaron M. Frey said his office has retracted a lawsuit that challenged the funding freeze that had supported roughly $3 million, and was launched last month by the Agriculture Department. In an interview, the federal dollar said it helped feed disabled people in a gathering environment when they paid for meal preparation at schools and parenting centres.
The agriculture sector did not immediately respond to requests for comment, but said the freeze would not take food from the children.
The conflict between President Trump and the governor of Maine, Democrat Janet Mills escalated at an event at the White House in February. Trump told Mills that he has “better obedience” in an executive order that prohibits trans athletes from participating in women and women's sports. The governor, who refused to comply with the order, replied, “I'll see you in court.”
Agricultural Secretary Brooke Rollins cited his unwillingness to comply with executive orders when the federal fund is frozen. She said in an April statement that her agency has reviewed the grants given to Maine by the Biden administration and is potentially casting as “waste, redundant, or otherwise against the Trump administration's priorities.”
Five days later, Frey filed a lawsuit saying the suspension was affecting children and at-risk adults.
“Food doesn't just buy it themselves, it's not saving itself and cooking,” Frey said Friday, adding that the Trump administration will “bury” Maine. “The message here is that if you don't follow the law and try to target the main without resorting to fragments of the law to support it, we have to take you to court.”
The White House has postponed comments to the Agriculture Department.
In a statement, Mills said the Trump administration had made “an illegal attempt to freeze important funds.” But the agreement would preserve healthy diets for around 170,000 school children in Maine, she said.
