Harris County joins lawsuit to protect WIC food assistance

Harris County joined a nationwide lawsuit July 2 aimed at stopping a U.S. Department of Agriculture reorganization that county leaders say could put WIC food assistance at risk for tens of thousands of local families. The county said WIC is the second-largest federal grant received by Harris County Public Health and serves between 47,000 and 48,000 women, infants and children in unincorporated Harris County.

The filing came in American Federation of Government Employees v. Trump, where the coalition submitted a supplemental complaint and a motion for preliminary injunction. The group argues the Trump-Vance administration’s USDA overhaul would unlawfully reorganize the federal government, shrink the workforce and weaken the government’s ability to deliver essential services, including support for the Women, Infants and Children program.

Harris County Public Health says WIC is a federally funded nutrition program administered through the Texas Department of State Health Services. It serves pregnant women, breastfeeding women, newborns, infants and children up to age five. In May 2026, about 37,000 of Harris County’s WIC clients were infants and children, underscoring how heavily the program is used by young families across the county.

The coalition says the reorganization could trigger mass staff departures from USDA and leave the department unable to carry out basic functions. On USDA’s reorganization page, the agency said the Food and Nutrition Service and the Food, Nutrition and Consumer Services mission area are now the Food and Nutrition Administration, with details still subject to union negotiations. The National WIC Association, which represents more than 10,000 WIC professionals nationwide, opposed the plan on April 30 and warned it could disrupt WIC operations and families.

The lawsuit also reflects a broader front of local governments and advocacy groups that have lined up against the plan. Along with Harris County, the coalition includes the American Federation of Government Employees, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, the Service Employees International Union, the Alliance for Retired Americans, the American Public Health Association, the Natural Resources Defense Council, San Francisco, Santa Clara County, Chicago, Baltimore and King County, Washington. AFGE said the July 1 filing added three more plaintiffs, bringing the coalition to 31 plaintiffs.

County officials said the case is meant to keep the federal nutrition system stable for families who depend on it now, not after a bureaucratic shuffle works its way through Washington.