On November 4, 2025, the federal district court in Rhode Island issued a decision with nationwide implications for all recipients of U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) grants. The district court concluded that the “immigration enforcement conditions” imposed earlier this year through DOT grant agreements are unlawful. The court vacated (i.e., invalidated) those grant conditions in all DOT grants, which goes beyond the more limited preliminary injunction the court had issued earlier this year. The decision affects all FAA, FTA, FRA, FHWA, and other DOT grants.  Further appeals are possible, so grant recipients are encouraged to track this case closely and await further guidance from their agency contacts on how DOT will comply.

Earlier this year, DOT took a series of actions to direct grant recipients to cooperate with federal authorities in the enforcement of federal law, including in particular a mandate that they cooperate with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the enforcement of federal immigration law.

In May, twenty states and the District of Columbia sued to prevent DOT from imposing those immigration enforcement conditions in grant agreements. See California v. U.S. DOT, No. 25‑cv‑208 (D.R.I.). In June, the Rhode Island district court granted a preliminary injunction, blocking DOT from implementing or enforcing those conditions against the states that sued.

Today, the district court granted summary judgment in favor of the states that sued and took further action to make the effect of its ruling nationwide. The court took three specific actions:

• First, the court declared the immigration enforcement condition unlawful because it exceeds DOT’s statutory authority, violates the Administrative Procedure Act, and violates the Spending Clause of the Constitution.
• Second, the court ordered the immigration enforcement condition to be “vacated”—or invalidated—from all grant agreements administered by DOT or its modal agencies.
• Third, the court permanently enjoined DOT from implementing or enforcing the immigration enforcement condition against the states that sued or from otherwise attempting to condition federal transportation funding on state cooperation with federal civil immigration enforcement.

The district court’s ruling goes into effect immediately. DOT may choose to appeal the decision or seek to stay (i.e., pause) the decision pending appeal. All recipients of any DOT or modal agency grants should closely monitor this case and await further guidance from DOT on how it will comply with the ruling.

If you have questions, contact Tracy Davis, Peter Kirsch or Steve Osit for questions about airport programs, and Allison Ishihara Fultz, Ayelet Hirschkorn, Subash Iyer, or John Putnam for questions about transit programs.