US Court Rules on USAID Operations.

The Court Closed the USAID Agency Due to Violations of the Constitution

A federal judge in Maryland has ruled to close the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

In a 68-page ruling, Judge Theodore Chuang stated that the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump likely violated several provisions of the U.S. Constitution, including the principle of separation of powers.

The judge believes that these actions have harmed the plaintiffs, former agency employees, as well as the public interest, as they deprived elected representatives in Congress of their constitutional powers.

The judge requires the reinstatement of the dismissed plaintiffs and guarantees them access to their jobs. Access to work emails and electronic systems must also be restored for all agency employees.

The judge also prohibited the Government Accountability Office from taking any actions regarding USAID without the permission of an agency official who has legal authority to do so. The agency's interim administrator has been appointed as Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Closure of the USAID Agency

On January 20, Trump prohibited the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) from providing aid to other countries for 90 days. After that, an audit of the agency's activities began.

On January 29, the U.S. State Department decided to temporarily continue funding some humanitarian programs that 'save lives.'

On March 10, the State Department announced that the U.S. is officially closing 83% of USAID programs. The programs that are retained (about 1000) will be transferred to the State Department for more efficient administration.

USAID is an independent governmental agency established by the U.S. Congress in 1961. It employs about 10,000 people, two-thirds of whom are located outside the U.S. Last year, the agency oversaw the implementation of development assistance projects totaling approximately 50 billion U.S. dollars.