Attorney General Tong Files Brief Opposing Unlawful Termination of Job Corps

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06/16/2025

Attorney General Tong Files Brief Opposing Unlawful Termination of Job Corps

(Hartford, CT) -- Attorney General William Tong has joined a coalition of 20 attorneys general filing an amicus brief in support of Job Corps, a national program that offers career training and housing to young Americans from low-income backgrounds. Job Corps has nearly 100 residential campuses across the country, and the Trump Administration’s illegal termination of the program threatens to leave thousands of vulnerable young Americans homeless.

“For six decades, Job Corps has aided our nation’s most vulnerable youth through stable housing and job training. The Trump Administration blatantly ignored federal law and Congressional authority in arbitrarily terminating this program—callously seeking to kick at-risk youth to the curb. Connecticut joins with states across the nation to protect Job Corps and the vital education, support and training it provides,” said Attorney General Tong.

The brief explains that “in the sixty years since Congress created Job Corps, millions of young Americans from low-income backgrounds have been served by the program’s unique combination of education, training, housing, healthcare and community.” The unlawful termination will impact tens of thousands of young Americans who are currently enrolled and housed at campuses in all fifty states. Thousands of these program participants were unhoused or in foster care when they enrolled and have no alternative housing if they lose their residence through the program.

The brief was filed in National Job Corps Association et al. v. Department of Labor et al. in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on Friday. Friday’s amicus filing reaffirms that the injunction is necessary to protect vulnerable state residents and promote state goals in education and workforce development. It further reinforces the point that the Trump Administration cannot violate federal law and the Constitution by terminating congressionally mandated programs it opposes.

The brief is signed by the attorneys general of Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Nevada, Rhode Island, Oregon, Vermont, Washington.

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