A federal judge in Seattle has stopped the Trump administration’s attempt to bar undocumented children from Head Start, freezing the policy across the entire country.
The ruling, handed down by U.S. District Judge Ricardo Martinez, blocks the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) from enforcing immigration-based restrictions on the preschool program. Martinez’s order came just one day after a Rhode Island judge issued a narrower injunction for 21 states and Washington, D.C.
“Today the court was clear: HHS does not have the authority to impose an immigration-based restriction on Head Start families,” said one attorney representing the challengers, hailing the decision as a safeguard for low-income communities who rely on the program.
The Biden-era fight over Head Start? Not exactly. This clash was born from a July directive by HHS under Trump that tried to reinterpret a 1996 welfare law, the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act, to sweep Head Start into its restrictions. For decades, HHS had viewed the law as excluding preschool programs—focusing instead on benefits tied to strict eligibility rules.
Head Start, launched in the 1960s, offers early education, health, and nutrition support to children in struggling families. Migrant advocacy groups and Head Start associations from states including Illinois, Pennsylvania, Washington, and Wisconsin—backed by parents’ organizations in Oakland and Oregon—argued that the new interpretation was unlawful and would shut out children who have long been allowed to participate.
Martinez agreed, writing that HHS sidestepped rulemaking requirements and overstepped the meaning of the statute. He noted that Congress had repeatedly accepted HHS’s 1998 stance, even expanding access rather than limiting it.
The administration, however, signaled it will appeal. “Illegal aliens should not have access to federal benefits funded by the American taxpayers for American citizens,” said a White House spokesperson, insisting the courts will ultimately vindicate their position.
While the Supreme Court has recently narrowed judges’ power to issue sweeping nationwide injunctions, Martinez argued that only a broad order could prevent “piecemeal, confusing, and incomplete relief.”
For now, Head Start classrooms remain open to all who qualify—regardless of immigration status—while the legal fight moves up the ladder
