GovAct Press Release: Amicus Brief on behalf of 30+ Bipartisan Former Governors Urging Federal Court to Block Cuts to AmeriCorps

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GovAct Files Amicus Brief on behalf of 30+ Bipartisan Former Governors
Urging Federal Court to Block Cuts to AmeriCorps
Former governors warn of devastating consequences for state programs and vulnerable communities 

Washington, D.C. — Monday, May 12 — GovAct, a nonprofit nonpartisan organization that helps governors work across state lines to champion fundamental freedoms and improve people’s lives, today announced that it filed a bipartisan amicus curiae brief on behalf of 33 former governors in State of Maryland, et al. v. Corporation for National and Community Service, a lawsuit challenging the federal government’s abrupt dismantling of AmeriCorps programs. 

The brief, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, supports a coalition of 23 attorneys general and the governors of Kentucky and Pennsylvania in seeking a preliminary injunction to halt mass terminations and funding cuts imposed by the Corporation for National and Community Service, operating as AmeriCorps, under the directive of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) initiative. 

The brief’s signatories include a bipartisan array of respected former governors from across the country, from Alaska, California, Colorado, Delaware, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. Their collective experience underscores the brief’s assertion that eliminating AmeriCorps would “cause irreparable harm to state services and communities across the country.” 

Drawing on decades of firsthand experience, the former governors argue that eliminating AmeriCorps will irreparably harm critical state services across education, disaster response, public health, conservation, and more. The amicus brief stresses: 

“On a national scale, AmeriCorps works with all 50 states to offer a wide variety of programming that supplements—but does not duplicate—state resources. This means that AmeriCorps, by design, offers services that would otherwise be unavailable—and which will be unavailable should AmeriCorps be dismantled.” 

These national service programs are embedded in state infrastructure. They provide over 200,000 annual placements and deliver essential resources through state service commissions and nonprofit partners. AmeriCorps funding and personnel enable everything from disaster recovery and trail maintenance to tutoring children with special needs and combating the opioid epidemic. Many of these efforts are coordinated through governor-led state commissions. 

Statement from Former Governor Marc Racicot (R-MT)

“I had the privilege of serving as governor of Montana in 1993 when the Governor’s Office of Community was first established in Montana. Not long thereafter, also in 1993, the Corporation for National and Community Service was created, AmeriCorps was launched and I was selected to serve on the Board of the Corporation. From those beginnings, and every day since, I have witnessed the power of community service to transform lives, to strengthen our states and communities, and to provide the adhesive that holds our republic together,” said former Governor Marc Racicot (R-MT).  “Terminating funding for AmeriCorps is a mindless and cruel move that will have devastating impacts on communities across the country from the most rural to the most urban. Abruptly precluding young AmeriCorps volunteers from mentoring students in need and seniors delivering the essentials of life to their home-bound neighbors cripples our communities and endangers our most vulnerable populations. The proposed cuts also dash the civic commitment and energy of those who raised their hands to serve a cause and a mission larger than themselves. I’m unequivocally committed to joining this friend-of-the-court brief to call attention to how critical AmeriCorps is and has been, and to urge the court to block these catastrophic funding cuts.” 

Statement from Former HHS Secretary and Governor Kathleen Sebelius (D-KS)

“As governor of Kansas and while serving as Secretary of Health and Human Services, I saw firsthand the transformative and essential role AmeriCorps plays in our communities. From helping students achieve their potential academically to lifting communities out of poverty to promoting public health, to helping families from devastating natural disasters, AmeriCorps is on the front lines in every corner of our nation,” said former HHS Secretary and Governor Kathleen Sebelius (D-KS). “The devastating funding cuts from the federal administration harm us all, which is why I’ve joined other former governors to urge the court to stop the dismantling of AmeriCorps.” 

Statement from GovAct CEO and Founder Julia Spiegel

“Former governors have a unique and trusted perspective—they have personally sat at the intersection of policy and people, where national decisions become local realities,” said Julia Spiegel, Founder and CEO of GovAct. “We believe it’s critical to lift up the collective voices of governors who have directly managed programs like AmeriCorps, because their leadership and experiences are essential in shaping solutions that work for communities. Their united message in this brief is clear: AmeriCorps is not expendable, it’s indispensable.” 

The litigation follows news that DOGE placed up to 85% of AmeriCorps staff on leave, halting countless initiatives in real time, from wildfire mitigation in the west to elder support in rural communities. The brief includes case studies from states like Wisconsin, Kansas, and Massachusetts, where AmeriCorps has been instrumental in operating education, health, and conservation programs. 

Former governors who joined the brief include:  

About GovAct 

Governors Action Alliance (GovAct) is a nonprofit nonpartisan organization that helps governors work across state lines to champion fundamental freedoms and improve people’s lives. GovAct serves as a centralized platform for collaboration across governors’ offices—incubating, launching, and supporting alliances of governors. These alliances share cutting-edge policy and legal approaches to some of the most challenging and critical issues we face, from reproductive freedom and democracy to immigration and public safety.  To learn more, go to www.GovActAlliance.org.