Attorney General Bonta Stops $184 Million Cut to AmeriCorps Service Programs

OAKLAND – California Attorney General Rob Bonta today prevailed in preserving funding for AmeriCorps, an independent federal agency that engages Americans in meaningful community-based service by providing opportunities for more than 200,000 Americans to serve their communities every year. The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) agreed to release over $184 million in funding, including $11.5 million for California, that AmeriCorps plans to award to service programs across the country, following a multistate challenge. OMB’s attempted cuts threatened the survival of those programs and the well-being of those who depend on them. On July 23, Attorney General Bonta led a coalition in filing an amended lawsuit challenging OMB’s attempt to gut AmeriCorps programs. Today, when their response for these actions was due in Court, OMB and AmeriCorps instead agreed to fully release the previously withheld funds.  

"Once again, because of our lawsuit, the Trump Administration has backed down, reversed course and committed to release vital funding to our states," said Attorney General Bonta. "AmeriCorps volunteers represent the best of who we are as a country. The Trump Administration's senseless attack on AmeriCorps programs, which directly support communities across our state and nation, is just one part of its broader effort to dismantle our government and defund the programs and services it provides. But California will not stop holding this Administration accountable. We’re continuing to fight for — and win — full relief for Californians."

AmeriCorps supports national and state community service programs by funding and placing volunteers in local and national organizations that address critical community needs. Organizations rely on support from AmeriCorps to recruit, place, and supervise AmeriCorps members nationwide. In 2024, more than 6,150 California members served at least 1,200 locations, including schools, food banks, homeless shelters, health clinics, youth centers, veterans’ facilities, and other nonprofit and faith-based organizations. AmeriCorps invested more than $133 million in federal funding to California that same year to support cost-effective community solutions, working with local partners on the ground to help communities tackle their toughest challenges. This includes programs like:

• Prevent Child Abuse California, which hosts 65 AmeriCorps members who provide academic assistance, life skills, and financial literacy to hundreds of foster youths across 15 counties. 
• Partnership for Veterans and People Experiencing Homeless, which hosts 25 AmeriCorps members that provide housing services, job placement, and case management to veterans and homeless individuals in Santa Barbara County.
• Reading Partners California, which hosts 80 AmeriCorps members who recruit and manage approximately 1400 volunteers to provide one-on-one literacy tutoring to students at 58 low-income elementary schools.

On April 29, Attorney General Bonta and the coalition challenged the administration’s plans to eliminate nearly 90% of AmeriCorps’ workforce, abruptly cancel its contracts, and close $400 million worth of AmeriCorps-supported programs. In June, Attorney General Bonta and the coalition secured a court order reinstating hundreds of AmeriCorps programs that were unlawfully cancelled and barring AmeriCorps from making similar cuts without formal rulemaking. Despite this order, OMB withheld vast sums intended for outstanding service programs, threatening their survival and the wellbeing of those who depend on their services. 

The coalition subsequently filed an amended lawsuit adding OMB as a defendant and a motion for a preliminary injunction, asking for an order to stop OMB from withholding the relevant funds. The Trump Administration’s response was due yesterday, August 28, 2025. Rather than oppose the states’ motion, the Administration instead informed the Court that OMB would release all withheld AmeriCorps funds, totaling over $184 million, which AmeriCorps will distribute to programs nationwide, as quickly as possible.  

Attorney General Bonta, alongside the attorneys general of Maryland, Delaware, and Colorado, led the attorneys general of Arizona, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, the District of Columbia, as well as the states of Kentucky and Pennsylvania in filing the lawsuit.