⚖ Oral Arguments, with Context

The Seventh Circuit hears ACT Now Coalition versus the United States Department of Education. Two federal Full-Service Community Schools grants supported ACT Now's work connecting Illinois schools with academic, social, and health services for students and families. In December 2025, the department refused to continue the funding, pointing to diversity, equity, and inclusion language in the original grant applications. The organizations sued, alleging that the government was penalizing their viewpoints rather than controlling what federal money could buy. The district court denied a preliminary injunction, a temporary order that would have restored funding while the lawsuit proceeded, because it found their First Amendment claims unlikely to succeed. Their lawyer will argue that the cited language described the organizations' values, not plans to spend these grants on the disputed training, and that losing student services warrants temporary relief. The government's lawyer will argue that the department could reject the risk of funding activities it opposed, and that serious harm cannot replace the required showing of likely success. The appeal turns on the line between choosing projects and punishing speakers, and on the standard for relief before a final judgment. Recording note: The official audio cuts off during the judge's administrative closing words, after the argument and the statement that the case is taken under advisement.

ACT Now Coalition v. United States Department of Education (No. 26-2473) — U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, argued November 12, 2026.