Board votes to join lawsuit after Education Department temporarily withheld federal Title grants; state allocations now received

The Cincinnati Public Schools Board of Education on Aug. 4 voted to approve a resolution opposing the U.S. Department of Education’s decision to withhold federal Title II-A, III-A and IV-A grants and to join litigation seeking the funds’ release. The roll call vote was unanimous. The resolution matters because the withheld grants—identified at the meeting as roughly $5.2 million at risk for the district—support teacher development and other programs, and the board said joining the lawsuit was a means to press for immediate distribution. Board members spoke for staying in the case even after quick federal action. “I’m still very glad we filed it,” Board member Lindy said during discussion, acknowledging the administration later reversed course. General counsel Dan Hoyne thanked the board and others who joined the litigation and noted a practical benefit: “we were able to join this lawsuit … without spending any CPS dollars on this, because of contributions of some of the other participants in the lawsuit.” Treasurer Wagner and district grants staff briefed the board on timing and next steps. “They have been released to the states at this point,” Hoyne said during discussion; later in the meeting Mike Guston, assistant treasurer, summarized the state update: “the breaking news was that we heard from the state on Friday that as of July 30, the state had received their allocations for these funds. So now we’re just waiting for the state to take statewide allocations, divide those amongst the districts, and give us our numbers.” District staff also noted that while the immediate emergency (requests for preliminary injunctions) was dropped after funds began moving, future disbursements remain at issue. Hoyne and board members said plaintiffs narrowed emergency demands because the funds had started to flow, but the litigation remains active to secure assurances about future payments. Board members praised administration persistence and urged continued vigilance. “We stay in the fight,” Board member Lindy said. “No question … staying in this makes a ton of sense.” The board formalized the action by approving the resolution; Treasurer Wagner recorded the vote as: Mister Craig—yes; Mister Crossett—yes; Mister Lindy—yes; Miss Mapp—yes; Vice President Bolton—yes; President Moffitt—yes. Looking ahead, district staff said the state will use the federal formula to allocate the grant dollars to local districts and that the state announced it will treat the “substantially approved” date as July 1 for spending purposes. District staff called that a helpful technical step because it preserves the standard program timeline for using the money. Discussion at the meeting also flagged related state-level budget changes that could affect local revenue tools. Treasurer Wagner briefed the board that the state budget debate includes proposals to eliminate fixed-sum levies and substitute them with fixed-rate options and school-income taxes; the board was told these changes could materially affect the district’s levy strategy in coming years. The board’s action on Aug. 4 keeps Cincinnati Public Schools in litigation to secure federal education dollars while staff await the state’s district-level allocations and continue to track future federal and state funding risks.