This week’s federal policy roundup covers the community impact of major developments in birthright citizenship, voting rights, campaign finance, executive power, civil rights, and public benefits. Much of it again came from the Supreme Court, which issued the final decisions of its term this week. From the Court’s affirmation of birthright citizenship to its expansion of presidential power over federal agencies, alongside a series of lower-court rulings blocking administration initiatives, these decisions carry real consequences across nearly every area of community life. We are sending this update early, ahead of the Independence Day holiday weekend.
Supreme Court Affirms Birthright Citizenship is a Constitutional Right
In its final decision of the term, the Supreme Court ruled 6-3 on June 30 in Trump v. Barbara that Executive Order 14160 is unlawful and cannot take effect. A five-justice majority held that the Fourteenth Amendment guarantees citizenship to every child born on U.S. soil regardless of a parent’s immigration status, reaffirming the rule set in United States v. Wong Kim Ark (1898). Ratified after the Civil War to secure citizenship for formerly enslaved people and to bar the government from denying it by race or ancestry, the Amendment ties citizenship to birthplace rather than to a child’s parents. The order, signed in January 2025, sought to deny citizenship to U.S.-born children whose parents were undocumented or temporarily present. A sixth justice agreed that the order is unlawful on statutory grounds, while three dissenters would have upheld it, arguing the Amendment does not reach children of parents without a permanent tie to the country.
Because the majority grounded its decision in the Constitution, the rule cannot be undone by executive order or by statute. Children born in the United States are citizens at birth, and their existing status and documents are unaffected. The executive order that prompted the case does not take effect and never did.
State Laws Counting Mail Ballots Postmarked by Election Day That Arrive Later Upheld by Supreme Court
The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 Monday in Watson v. Republican National Committee that federal election law does not require mailed ballots to be received by Election Day, preserving state laws that count ballots postmarked on time but arriving afterward. The decision reversed a Fifth Circuit court of appeals ruling striking down Mississippi’s law allowing ballots to arrive up to five business days post-Election Day. Justice Barrett authored the majority, finding federal statutes establish when voters must cast ballots but set no receipt deadline. The ruling protects existing grace periods in 14 states, the District of Columbia, and several territories, and reinforces state authority over ballot receipt deadlines.
Supreme Court Removes Limits on Party Spending Coordinated with Candidates
The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 Tuesday in National Republican Senatorial Committee v. Federal Election Commission that federal limits on coordinated spending between political parties and their candidates violate the First Amendment, striking down provisions of the Federal Election Campaign Act that had capped how much national and state party committees could spend in coordination with candidates. The Court found that the limits imposed a direct restriction on political speech not narrowly tailored to prevent corruption, overruling its own 2001 precedent that had upheld the same restrictions. The case originated with a 2022 challenge by J.D. Vance and others; the Trump administration declined to defend the law after returning to office. Three justices dissented, arguing that the ruling allows donors to funnel substantially more money to candidates through parties than contribution limits would otherwise permit. Political parties may now spend unlimited amounts coordinating with candidates on advertising and strategy, continuing the Court’s broader trend of treating campaign finance restrictions as burdens on protected political speech.
Another Court Rejects DOJ Effort to Obtain State Voter Rolls
On Monday, a federal district court dismissed the Department of Justice’s lawsuit seeking to compel New Hampshire to provide its unredacted statewide voter registration database, marking the department’s eleventh loss in its nationwide effort to obtain detailed voter registration records from states. The court held that the DOJ’s request did not satisfy the requirements of the Civil Rights Act of 1960 and failed to prove a violation of the Help America Vote Act, rejecting the administration’s effort to compel disclosure of voter data protected under state law. The ruling further limits the DOJ’s current legal strategy for obtaining sensitive voter registration information as part of its broader effort to shift power over elections from states to the federal government.
Education Department Loan Forgiveness Rule Blocked
Two federal district courts blocked the Department of Education this week from implementing a rule scheduled to take effect July 1 that would have denied Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) eligibility to borrowers employed by organizations the department determined had a “substantial illegal purpose.” One judge vacated the rule entirely, while a second blocked its implementation one day before it was set to take effect. Both courts found that the department exceeded its statutory authority. One court also found the rule likely violated the First Amendment by chilling lawful work because its vague definition of a “substantial illegal purpose” gave the government broad discretion to use loan forgiveness to favor organizations aligned with the administration’s positions while penalizing those that were not. This could include organizations assisting immigrants, advancing equity, or providing gender-affirming care. The decisions preserve existing PSLF eligibility standards while the litigation continues.
HUD Homelessness Funding Overhaul Blocked
A federal court in Rhode Island struck down the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) 2025 Continuum of Care grant program Monday, ruling the agency violated the Administrative Procedure Act by attempting to shift funding away from the longstanding Housing First model without adequately considering the consequences of overhauling the program. The court vacated HUD’s 2025 funding notice, which prioritizes temporary housing and “self-sufficiency” programs over permanent supportive housing. The court found HUD acted without evaluating effects on existing programs, putting an estimated 170,000 people at risk of losing stable housing. The ruling preserves the existing framework for 2025 grants, allowing local governments and nonprofit providers to continue operating under prior rules while delayed awards are finalized. The ruling does not extend to HUD’s 2026 funding changes, leaving the administration’s broader effort to reshape federal homelessness policy subject to future litigation.
Executive Power Over Federal Agencies Expanded by Supreme Court
The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 Monday to dramatically expand presidential power over the federal government, overturning nearly 90 years of precedent by holding in Trump v. Slaughter that the president may fire leaders of independent agencies at will, including Federal Trade Commissioner Rebecca Slaughter. The decision eliminates longstanding congressional protections designed to insulate agencies from political pressure, giving the president authority to replace independent agency leaders with political loyalists, while leaving it unclear if at-will removal also extends to all federal government employees as well. The ruling impacts roughly two dozen agencies, including the Securities and Exchange Commission, Food and Drug Administration, and Environmental Protection Agency, which regulate financial markets, public health, environmental protection, nuclear safety, and consumer protection. In a separate 5-4 ruling in Trump v. Cook, the Court carved out a single exception for Federal Reserve Board governors, who retain removal protections, a distinction that likely reflects the Court’s reluctance to give the president direct influence over monetary policy and interest rates.
State Bans on Transgender Athletes from Women’ s Sports Teams Upheld by Supreme Court
The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 on Tuesday that states can exclude transgender athletes from women’s and girls’ sports teams. The decision resolved West Virginia v. B.P.J. and Little v. Hecox, overturning lower court rulings favoring transgender students and upholding exclusionary laws in West Virginia and Idaho. The Court unanimously held the laws did not violate Title IX, which prohibits sex-based discrimination, but split 6-3 whether excluding transgender athletes violates the Constitution’s Equal Protection Clause, with the three liberal justices arguing it does.
The ruling allows states to enact similar laws but does not impose a nationwide ban, meaning transgender girls may still compete in states that have not enacted similar laws. Although limited to school sports, the decision could encourage broader efforts to roll back transgender civil rights protections and may increase scrutiny of girls perceived as insufficiently feminine, reviving proposals for genetic testing or genital inspections advanced by some lawmakers.
Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Constitutional Protections for Digital Privacy
The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 on Monday in Chatrie v. United States that constitutional privacy protections apply to users’ cellphone location history. The court held that individuals have a reasonable expectation of privacy in their cellphone location records and do not give up that expectation by opting into Google’s or other tech companies’ location history settings. This means that police requests to tech companies for individuals’ location history are considered a search protected by the Fourth Amendment and require a warrant. The decision upholds digital privacy protections, requiring some safeguards around law enforcement’s access to time stamped movement history that can reveal a person’s familial, professional, religious, and sexual associations.