California Attorney General Rob Bonta visited Reading Partners in San Francisco to recognize the contributions of AmeriCorps members working in California communities. Reading Partners, supported by AmeriCorps, provides one-on-one tutoring to elementary school students to help them improve their reading skills.
AmeriCorps is a federal agency that supports national and state service programs by placing volunteers in organizations that address community needs. In 2024, over 6,000 AmeriCorps members served at more than 1,200 locations across California, including schools, food banks, homeless shelters, health clinics, youth centers, veterans’ facilities, and other nonprofit and faith-based organizations.
Earlier this year, the Trump Administration sought to cut funding for AmeriCorps and dismantle the agency. Attorney General Bonta responded by filing a lawsuit that resulted in continued support for AmeriCorps programs throughout California.
“When we invest in AmeriCorps, we invest in people, potential, and progress,” said Attorney General Rob Bonta. “Today I got to see first-hand how AmeriCorps volunteers are lifting up the next generation of students through programs like Reading Partners. Amid all of the challenges over this past year, these volunteers have remained undaunted in their dedication to serving their communities. My office will continue to stand up for them and fight to protect AmeriCorps and its spirit of giving this holiday season.”
California Chief Service Officer and GO-Serve Director Josh Fryday commented on the importance of defending AmeriCorps: “Today we highlight the need to stand up – to the Trump Administration for our values and for each other. We are standing firm to defend AmeriCorps in California and together we’re demonstrating the power of service to strengthen our communities. I’m grateful to Attorney General Rob Bonta for standing with us to protect service, and to Reading Partners, who continue to strengthen communities across the Bay Area.”
Hong Thach, Interim Executive Director of Reading Partners SF Bay Area added: “AmeriCorps has been a successful service program for decades in large part because it has consistently enjoyed broad bipartisan support. At Reading Partners, our focus is on supporting students and communities, and one of the primary ways we are able to do that at scale is through the service of hundreds of AmeriCorps members each year in California and across the country. In addition to building trusting relationships with students in our dedicated reading centers, AmeriCorps members also collaborate closely with our school partners, principals, and teachers to ensure our program is part of an integrated approach to learning. Reading Partners has been a proud AmeriCorps partner organization since 2010 because, quite simply, the program works. Without AmeriCorps, Reading Partners would not be able to operate at the scale required to meet community needs.”
In 2024 alone,AmeriCorps invested more than $133 million into California community initiatives through partnerships with local organizations such as Reading Partners.
In April 2025, Attorney General Bonta co-led a coalition of state attorneys general who filed suit against efforts by the Trump Administration aimed at reducing or withholding funds from AmeriCorps. The coalition obtained an early court order preventing cuts; when further funding was threatened—an additional $184 million—the administration released those funds rather than continue legal proceedings.
Attorney General Bonta’s litigation efforts have extended beyond protecting service programs like AmeriCorps. Over a period of 45 weeks he took legal action against actions by the Trump Administration 48 times on issues including constitutional rights protection (such as birthright citizenship), securing grant funding for crime victim services providers after illegal conditions were dropped by U.S. DOJ following lawsuits; preserving education funding totaling over $900 million plus another $200 million for academic recovery post-pandemic; blocking attempts at conditioning transportation or homeland security grants on immigration enforcement requirements; and stopping unauthorized access or use of private data belonging Medicaid or SNAP recipients.
More information about these efforts can be found on the California Department of Justice’s federal accountability page.
