New York state officials have told the Trump administration that they will not comply with its demands to end diversity, equity and inclusion practices in public schools, despite the administration's threats to terminate federal education funding.Daniel Morton-Bentley, counsel and deputy commissioner of the NYS Department of Education, said in a letter dated Friday to the federal Education Department that state officials do not believe the federal agency has the authority to make such demands. “We understand that the current administration seeks to censor anything it deems ‘diversity, equity &amp; inclusion,’” he wrote. “But there are no federal or State laws prohibiting the principles of DEI.”Morton-Bentley also wrote state officials were “unaware” of any authority the federal Department of Education has to demand that states agree with its interpretation of court decisions or to terminate funding without a formal administrative process.As reported by The Associated Press, the Trump administration on Thursday ordered K-12 schools nationwide to certify within 10 days that they are following federal civil rights laws and ending any discriminatory DEI practices, as a condition for receiving federal money. Federal funding comprises about 6% of the total funding for New York K-12 schools. The certification demand asked state and school leaders to sign a “reminder of legal obligations” acknowledging their federal money is conditioned on compliance with federal civil rights laws.The demand specifically threatens Title I funding, which sends billions of dollars a year to America’s schools and targets low-income areas.Morton-Bentley wrote that the state Education Department has already certified to the federal government on multiple occasions that it is complying with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, most recently in January. He said the federal department is basing its demands to end DEI programs on a faulty legal interpretation.***New York Democratic lawmakers, looking for ways to defend against President Donald Trump’s intended funding cuts, have proposed legislation that would allow the state to keep the tax dollars it owes the federal government to fill the gaps. Keshia Clukey reports in NEWDAY that the bill would allow the state to withhold payments, including state workers’ federal tax contributions, if the federal government fails to follow court orders to pay the funds it owes the state."This bill is about Democrats bringing a gun to a gunfight and about us doing what our charter lays out, which is our responsibility to protect New Yorkers," State Sen. Jessica Ramos (D-Jackson Heights), the bill’s Senate sponsor, said. "As legislators, what we’re looking to do is ensure that there is no lapse in services to our most vulnerable population."The proposal comes as the Trump administration and Republicans in Congress look to make massive cuts to federal funding streams, including safety-net programs such as shifting billions of dollars in Medicaid costs to the states — funding states have said they can’t possibly make up.New York’s bill would essentially give state officials the go-ahead to violate federal law, withholding funds including employee federal tax dollars, federal grant payments and potentially even employee Medicaid and Social Security contributions, which likely would trigger a federal court battle, according to bill sponsors and legal experts. Similar legislation has been proposed in Maryland.Opponents of the New York bill say it could hurt state employees whose income withholdings would be kept from the federal government.***More than 200 people gathered outside the Suffolk County Supreme Court in Riverhead Saturday morning for one of some 1,200 “Hands Off!” rallies across the United States to protest the Trump administration’s actions on government downsizing,...

NYS officials will not end DEI practices in public schools