SEATTLE (AP) — A federal judge has issued a nationwide block on a Trump administration directive that prevented children in the U.S. illegally from enrolling in Head Start, a federally funded preschool program.

Head Start associations in several states filed suit against the policy change by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The ruling by a federal judge in Washington state on Thursday comes after a coalition of 21 Democratic attorney generals succeeded in temporarily halting the policy’s implementation within their own states.

With the new ruling, the policy is now on hold across the country.

This is a developing story and will be updated. Originally Published: September 11, 2025 at 3:02 PM EDT

See Full Page