States sue Trump administration over policy requiring colleges to collect race data

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FILE - University of Michigan students walk on the UM campus on April 3, 2025 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Photo by Bill Pugliano/Getty Images)

Seventeen Democrat-led states are suing the Trump administration over its policy that requires colleges and universities to prove they aren’t considering race in admissions.

Which states are suing over college race data?

Local perspective:

The following states have joined Massachusetts in the lawsuit: 

Collecting race data from colleges

The backstory:

President Donald Trump rolled out the new policy in August over concerns that colleges and universities were using personal statements and other proxies to consider race, which he views as illegal discrimination.

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The Supreme Court ruled against the use of affirmative action in admissions in 2023, but said colleges may still consider how race has shaped students’ lives if they share that information in their admissions essays.

Colleges are now required to report more data to the National Center for Education Statistics, including the race and sex of colleges’ applicants, admitted students and enrolled students. The data is due by March 18; it must be disaggregated by race and sex and retroactively reported for the past seven years.

If colleges fail to turn over the additional data on time, the Education Department can take action. 

What they're saying:

"This Administration’s unlawful and haphazard actions are threatening the well-being of Massachusetts students and the prosperity of our colleges and universities," Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell said in a statement. "There is no way for institutions to reasonably deliver accurate data in the federal government’s rushed and arbitrary time frame, and it is unfair for schools to be threatened with fines, potential losses of funding, and baseless investigations should they not fulfill the Administration’s request."

The other side:

An Education Department spokesperson defended the new policy. 

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"American taxpayers invest over $100 billion into higher education each year and deserve transparency on how their dollars are being spent," spokesperson Ellen Keast said in a statement. "The Department’s efforts will expand an existing transparency tool to show how universities are taking race into consideration in admissions. What exactly are State AGs trying to shield universities from?"