Massachusetts Disability Commission Warned of Federal Funding Threats Across Four Policy Areas

BOSTON — March 11, 2026 — Massachusetts Permanent Commission on Disabilities hears federal funding warnings and apprenticeship expansion plans at quarterly meeting. Katie Dirks, chief state trial counsel at the Attorney General's office, told the commission her office filed its 50th lawsuit against the Trump administration on the morning of the March 11 meeting and has protected more than $3 billion in federal funding to Massachusetts, covering cases involving NIH research grants, school mental health services, higher-education DEI requirements, and Haiti Temporary Protected Status. Dirks warned that the federal administration's deliberately vague definition of "illegal DEI" — which DOJ counsel have at times conceded covers all DEI — may cause institutions to self-censor beyond what is legally required, including in disability employment programs. Undersecretary of Labor Josh Cutler and apprenticeship liaison Amara Rehman outlined a registered apprenticeship model requiring at least 2,000 paid hours, wage progression, and an industry credential, pointing to Bridgewater State University's Excel program for neurodivergent and disabled students as a replicable template for community colleges statewide. The commission's next community forum, Meeting the Moment, is set for March 27 in Lowell with 68 registrants, and the Massachusetts Office on Disability's municipal accessibility grant program — now upward of $3 million — is expected to open approximately May 1.