Case: State of Illinois v. Federal Emergency Management Agency

1:26-cv-00485 | U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island

Filed Date: July 23, 2026

Case Ongoing

Clearinghouse coding in progress

Case Summary

(This summary is temporary as we research the case.)

States filed this lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island against the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Department of Homeland Security, and their heads. The plaintiffs challenged three sets of conditions that the agencies attached to 2026 emergency preparedness grants. In particular, there were new election-related conditions on the Homeland Security Grant Program, which required states to verify the citizenship of everyone in their voter databases using the federal SAVE system, to plan a transition away from voting machines that read bar or QR codes, and to conduct audits under forthcoming guidelines from DHS. The state plaintiffs also challenged a reissued set of immigration-enforcement conditions nearly identical to ones the same court had vacated and enjoined in 2025. Finally, they challenged terms letting FEMA terminate awards at any time. 

People

For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73660264/parties/state-of-illinois-v-federal-emergency-management-agency/


Judge(s)
Attorney for Plaintiff

Arslanian, Vanessa A. (Rhode Island)

Basbaum, Jesse P. (Rhode Island)

Belisle, John Edward (Rhode Island)

Bies, Katherine (Rhode Island)

Boyer, Jacob (Rhode Island)

Documents in the Clearinghouse

Documents in this case
1

1:26-cv-00485

Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief

State of Illinois et al. v. Federal Emergency Management Agency et al.

July 23, 2026

July 23, 2026

Complaint
33

1:26-cv-00485

Summons Returned Executed as to USA

July 31, 2026

July 31, 2026

Docket

See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73660264/state-of-illinois-v-federal-emergency-management-agency/

Last updated Sept. 7, 2026, 7:04 p.m.

Docket for: State of Illinois v. Federal Emergency Management Agency
ECF Number Date Description Link
1 July 23, 2026

COMPLAINT ( filing fee paid $ 405.00, receipt number ARIDC-2313189 ), filed by State of Rhode Island. (Attachments: # 1 Exhibit A, # 2 Exhibit B, # 3 Exhibit C, # 4 Exhibit D, # 5 Exhibit E, # 6 Exhibit F, # 7 Exhibit G, # 8 Civil Cover Sheet)(Meosky, Paul) (Entered: 07/23/2026)

1 Exhibit A

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2 Exhibit B

View on PACER

3 Exhibit C

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4 Exhibit D

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5 Exhibit E

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6 Exhibit F

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7 Exhibit G

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8 Civil Cover Sheet

View on PACER

Clearinghouse
2 July 23, 2026

CASE OPENING NOTICE ISSUED (Hill, Cherelle) (Entered: 07/23/2026)

RECAP
3 July 23, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Alex Hemmer on behalf of State of Illinois (Hemmer, Alex) (Entered: 07/23/2026)

RECAP
4 July 23, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by David Moskowitz on behalf of State of Colorado (Moskowitz, David) (Entered: 07/23/2026)

RECAP
5 July 23, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Sarah Hunter Weiss on behalf of State of Colorado (Weiss, Sarah) (Entered: 07/23/2026)

RECAP
6 July 23, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Kalikoonalani Diara Fernandes on behalf of State of Hawai'i (Fernandes, Kalikoonalani) (Entered: 07/23/2026)

RECAP
July 23, 2026

CASE CONDITIONALLY ASSIGNED to District Judge Mary S. McElroy and Magistrate Judge Patricia A. Sullivan. Related Case Number 25-cv-206 and 25-cv-495 based upon the indication on the cover sheet that a related case previously was assigned to the presiding judge. The assignment is subject to the presiding judge's determination that the cases, in fact, are related. (Hill, Cherelle)

July 23, 2026

TEXT ORDER : Pursuant to LR Gen 101(c), the Court suspends LR Gen 201(a) and any attorney employed by a State and is a member in good standing of the bar of another federal district court and each jurisdiction in which that attorney has been admitted may appear and practice in this matter without being admitted pro hac vice. Attorneys appearing on behalf of the States are directed to obtain filing privileges via PACER and to enter their appearances. So Ordered by District Judge Mary S. McElroy on 7/23/2026. (Potter, Carrie)

July 23, 2026

Order

July 23, 2026

Case Conditionally Assigned

7 July 24, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Neil Giovanatti on behalf of State of Michigan (Giovanatti, Neil) (Entered: 07/24/2026)

RECAP
8 July 24, 2026

Summons Request filed by State of Rhode Island. (Attachments: # 1 Summons - Fenton, # 2 Summons - Homeland Security, # 3 Summons - Mullin)(Meosky, Paul) (Entered: 07/24/2026)

RECAP
9 July 24, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Robert Newman Brewer on behalf of State of Maryland (Brewer, Robert) (Entered: 07/24/2026)

RECAP
10 July 24, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Daniel Paul Mosteller on behalf of State of North Carolina (Mosteller, Daniel) (Entered: 07/24/2026)

RECAP
11 July 24, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Stephen Thompson on behalf of State of New York (Thompson, Stephen) (Entered: 07/24/2026)

RECAP
12 July 24, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Julia S. Canney on behalf of Commonwealth of Massachusetts (Canney, Julia) (Entered: 07/24/2026)

RECAP
13 July 24, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Hayleigh S Crawford on behalf of State of Arizona (Crawford, Hayleigh) (Entered: 07/24/2026)

RECAP
14 July 24, 2026

Summons Issued as to Federal Emergency Management Agency, Robert J. Fenton, Markwayne Mullin, United States Department of Homeland Security (Attachments: # 1 Markwayne Mullin Summons, # 2 Robert J. Fenton Summons, # 3 United States Department of Homeland Security Summons)(Hill, Cherelle) (Entered: 07/24/2026)

RECAP
15 July 24, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Jacob Boyer on behalf of Josh Shapiro (Boyer, Jacob) (Entered: 07/24/2026)

RECAP
16 July 24, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Kiel Ireland on behalf of State of Nevada (Ireland, Kiel) (Entered: 07/24/2026)

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17 July 24, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Delbert Tran on behalf of State of California (Tran, Delbert) (Entered: 07/24/2026)

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18 July 24, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Lisa Catherine Ehrlich on behalf of State of California (Ehrlich, Lisa) (Entered: 07/24/2026)

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19 July 24, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Deylin O Thrift-Viveros on behalf of State of California (Thrift-Viveros, Deylin) (Entered: 07/24/2026)

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20 July 24, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Katherine Bies on behalf of State of Minnesota (Bies, Katherine) (Entered: 07/24/2026)

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21 July 24, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by James Edward Stanley on behalf of State of California (Stanley, James) (Entered: 07/24/2026)

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22 July 27, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by John Edward Belisle on behalf of State of Maine (Belisle, John) (Entered: 07/27/2026)

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23 July 27, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Thomas H. Castelli on behalf of State of Oregon (Castelli, Thomas) (Entered: 07/27/2026)

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24 July 27, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Jesse P. Basbaum on behalf of State of California (Basbaum, Jesse) (Entered: 07/27/2026)

RECAP
25 July 28, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Rabia Muqaddam on behalf of State of New York (Muqaddam, Rabia) (Entered: 07/28/2026)

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26 July 28, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Vanessa A. Arslanian on behalf of Commonwealth of Massachusetts (Arslanian, Vanessa) (Entered: 07/28/2026)

RECAP
27 July 29, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Ian Liston on behalf of State of Delaware (Liston, Ian) (Entered: 07/29/2026)

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28 July 29, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Vanessa L. Kassab on behalf of State of Delaware (Kassab, Vanessa) (Entered: 07/29/2026)

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29 July 29, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Tyler S. Roberts on behalf of State of Washington (Roberts, Tyler) (Entered: 07/29/2026)

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30 July 29, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Cristina Sepe on behalf of State of Washington (Sepe, Cristina) (Entered: 07/29/2026)

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31 July 29, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Lee Sherman on behalf of State of California (Sherman, Lee) (Entered: 07/29/2026)

RECAP
32 July 29, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Michael M. Tresnowski on behalf of State of Illinois (Tresnowski, Michael) (Entered: 07/29/2026)

RECAP
33 July 31, 2026

SUMMONS Returned Executed by State of Rhode Island. All Defendants., SUMMONS Returned Executed by State of Rhode Island. All Defendants. (Attachments: # 1 Executed Summons, # 2 Executed Summons, # 3 Executed Summons)(Meosky, Paul) (Entered: 07/31/2026)

1 Executed Summons

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2 Executed Summons

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3 Executed Summons

View on RECAP

Clearinghouse
34 Aug. 3, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Nicole Suzanne Hill on behalf of District of Columbia (Hill, Nicole) (Entered: 08/03/2026)

RECAP
35 Aug. 3, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Daniel Wilkes on behalf of State of North Carolina (Wilkes, Daniel) (Entered: 08/03/2026)

RECAP
36 Aug. 3, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Shankar Duraiswamy on behalf of State of New Jersey (Duraiswamy, Shankar) (Entered: 08/03/2026)

RECAP
37 Aug. 4, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Julio A Thompson on behalf of State of Vermont (Thompson, Julio) (Entered: 08/04/2026)

RECAP
38 Aug. 5, 2026

NOTICE of Appearance by Mark Noferi on behalf of State of New Mexico (Noferi, Mark) (Entered: 08/05/2026)

RECAP
39 Aug. 26, 2026

Notice of Appearance

RECAP
40 Aug. 31, 2026

Notice of Appearance

RECAP
41 Sept. 2, 2026

Notice (Other)

Clearinghouse

Case Details

State / Territory:

Rhode Island

Case Type(s):

Public Benefits/Government Services

Election/Voting Rights

Special Collection(s):

Trump Administration 2.0: Challenges to the Government

Key Dates

Filing Date: July 23, 2026

Case Ongoing: Yes

Case Details

Other Dockets:

District of Rhode Island 1:26-cv-00485

Recommended Citation