ATTORNEY GENERAL RAOUL URGES SUPREME COURT TO UPHOLD COLORADO CIVIL RIGHTS PROTECTIONS FOR UNIVERSAL PRESCHOOL

ATTORNEY GENERAL RAOUL URGES SUPREME COURT TO UPHOLD COLORADO CIVIL RIGHTS PROTECTIONS FOR UNIVERSAL PRESCHOOL

August 26, 2026

Chicago - Attorney General Kwame Raoul, as part of a coalition of 17 attorneys general, filed an amicus brief in the U.S. Supreme Court defending Colorado's requirement that preschool providers participating in the state's universal preschool program comply with state antidiscrimination laws, including protections for LGBTQ+ families.

In 2023, Colorado launched its universal preschool program, which provides public funding to both private and public preschool providers that choose to participate. As a condition of receiving that funding, participating providers must agree to provide eligible families an equal opportunity to enroll their children, regardless of race, ethnicity, religious affiliation, sexual orientation, gender identity, housing, income level or disability.

In St. Mary's Catholic Parish vs. Roy, two Catholic preschools and the Archdiocese of Denver sued to block Colorado from enforcing its equal enrollment requirement, arguing that the requirement unfairly targets religious institutions and conflicts with their religious teachings. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit rejected those claims, holding that Colorado's enrollment requirement applies to all schools equally. The Catholic preschools appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which agreed to hear oral arguments on the case on Nov. 3, 2026.

"I am joining my fellow attorneys general in urging the Supreme Court to uphold the 10th Circuit's ruling protecting nondiscrimination policies in Colorado, as every American deserves the same access to governmental programs and services regardless of who they are or what their families look like," Raoul said. "I will continue to defend civil rights protections whether they are threatened at the state level or by our federal government."

In their amicus brief, Raoul and the coalition argue that states have a strong interest in ensuring that organizations receiving public funding to provide public services comply with the same civil rights protections that apply to state-run programs. States frequently rely on private organizations to deliver publicly funded services, including education, childcare assistance, disaster relief, homeless services, job training and more. This "mixed delivery" model allows states to draw on the expertise and reach of private and nonprofit organizations while giving residents greater choice in how they access public services. Despite the involvement of private organizations, the services that states deliver through the mixed delivery model are still public services and are subject to the same antidiscrimination standards as their own in-house programs.

States have a compelling interest in protecting their residents from discrimination, including when public funds are involved. Many states, including Illinois, have enacted civil rights laws that require equal treatment in employment, housing, public services, education and other areas.

The nondiscrimination requirement in Colorado's universal preschool program stems from exactly this kind of law. Time and again, courts have upheld these critical civil rights protections, and the coalition argues that states should not be required to shed their commitment to equal treatment when funding public services, particularly in programs like Colorado's universal preschool program, where schools knowingly choose to participate.

Raoul and the coalition argue that allowing institutions to receive public funding without being required to comply with state antidiscrimination laws would undermine the "mixed delivery" model and force states to navigate a burdensome provider-by-provider patchwork of rules and exceptions. In some cases, states could be pushed to bring services entirely in-house, reducing choice and flexibility for residents.

Additionally, Raoul and the coalition argue that allowing private organizations to bypass state laws when receiving public funding would dramatically reshape previous interpretations of the First Amendment. Courts have established that state agencies cannot target entities because of their religious affiliations, but as the coalition argues and as the 10th Circuit ruled, Colorado's equal opportunity requirement does not fit that description because it applies equally to all schools.

The case also has implications beyond preschool. States routinely partner with private and religious organizations to deliver publicly funded services. A ruling that permits participating providers to disregard state civil rights laws could limit states' ability to establish consistent standards for public programs across a wide range of services.

Raoul and the coalition ask the court to uphold the 10th Circuit's ruling allowing Colorado to require preschools to comply with its equal enrollment requirement.

Joining Raoul in filing this amicus brief, which was co-led by Massachusetts Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison, are the attorneys general of California, Delaware, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington.