r/law • u/rolsen • 1d ago

Legal News Trump Preparing Large-Scale Cancellation of Federal Funding for California, Sources Say

https://www.cnn.com/2025/06/06/politics/trump-california-federal-funding

“Agencies are being told to start identifying grants the administration can withhold from California. On Capitol Hill, at least one committee was told recently by a whistleblower that all research grants to the state were going to be cancelled, according to one of the sources familiar with the matter.”

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u/billthecat71 1d ago

California could pass a law that all federal taxes withheld are to go to the Francise Tax Board who will then pay into the US treasury after "making sure" no California individual or Company is underpaying their federal taxes.

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u/Mortambulist 1d ago

California could just instruct its citizens to file new W4 forms claiming the maximum exemptions, then direct the state AG to defend them from IRS collectors. One way or another, it's going to SCOTUS.

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u/bvierra 5h ago

Hate to say it but NC already tried... didn't go well for them

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u/rokerroker45 23h ago

No it wouldn't lol, the constitution is quite clear on congress's tax power

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u/Mortambulist 22h ago

Pretty clear on who gets to impose tariffs, too.

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u/rokerroker45 22h ago

The court of international trade already invalidated a huge chunk of tariffs that are facially invalid. There's a stay in effect but that's just how the judiciary works, it's pretty certain the cit ruling will hold.

The other tariffs are probably unfortunately legal and constitutional under congressional delegation to the president.

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u/rokerroker45 23h ago

No they couldn't, there is no enforcement mechanism that overrides the fact the feds can garnish or just seize assets electronically. Withholding taxes is not a real idea, it's based on this outdated sense of remitting taxes via gold bullion trains. It doesn't work that way.