by Kandiss Edwards
December 27, 2025
The ruling restores funding to support mental health professionals in K-12 schools.
On Dec. 22, the New Mexico Attorney General’s Department of Justice announced the state won its lawsuit to restore federal funding for mental health; 15 other states have been successful in similar suits.
U.S. District Court Judge Kymberly Evanson of the Western District of Washington granted the states’ motion for summary judgment. The court found that the Education Department acted unlawfully when it abruptly discontinued multi-year grants meant to fund school-based mental health services. Funds were allocated under the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.
The ruling restores funding to support mental health professionals in K-12 schools. This includes smaller rural districts such as Silver Consolidated Schools and affects more than 5,000 New Mexico students who rely on those services.
Attorney General Raúl Torrez said in a statement that the office did not just join the lawsuit but helped lead a coalition of states to defend students’ access to mental health support.
“No one — regardless of politics — wants to deny our kids access to the mental health support they need to learn, grow, and thrive,” he said.
U.S. Senator Martin Heinrich, whose legislative work helped secure funding for the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, was pleased by the victory. Heinrich says the funds should never have been in jeopardy.
“This ruling is a major victory. “This ruling is a major victory for New Mexico students and families, and it restores funding that never should have been taken away in the first place. School-based mental health services are essential to helping our kids learn, stay safe, and succeed,” said Sen. Heinrich. “We will continue to hold this administration accountable and fight to make sure every dollar promised to our schools is delivered. Anything less is unacceptable.”
The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act was passed in 2022 with broad bipartisan support after a string of deadly school shootings. One billion dollars will be used to expand access to mental health professionals in schools nationwide.
The Education Department awarded multi-year grants with annual continuation decisions required under federal regulations. However, in April, it sent notices to grantees indicating the grants would be discontinued. The reasoning was not due to performance or logistics, but because the program no longer aligned with the department’s priorities. The coalition of states challenged that decision as “arbitrary and capricious” under the Administrative Procedure Act.
The lawsuit was led by Washington Attorney General Nick Brown and joined by the attorneys general of California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York, Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, and Wisconsin, as well as New Mexico.
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