Trump Administration Seeks $1 Billion Settlement from UCLA Over Civil Rights Violations

The Trump administration is seeking a $1 billion settlement from the University of California, Los Angeles, as part of a proposed agreement that would restore hundreds of millions in frozen federal funding and impose sweeping policy changes on the campus.

UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk told the university community this week that $584 million in funding “is suspended and at risk,” warning of “devastating” consequences to its research mission. The administration’s proposal, obtained by CNN, calls for the $1 billion payment to be made in installments and includes a $172 million claims fund for individuals affected by violations of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act.

The draft agreement would require UCLA to appoint a resolution monitor and a senior administrator focused on anti-discrimination compliance. It also includes significant campus policy changes: banning overnight demonstrations, revising protest procedures, ending race- and ethnicity-based scholarships, ensuring single-sex housing for women, expanding recognition for female athletes, and discontinuing gender-affirming care at the university’s hospital and medical school. Admissions data would also be shared with the resolution monitor.

In exchange, the federal government would restore UCLA’s funding and maintain its eligibility for future grants and contracts.

The proposal comes amid a Justice Department investigation into antisemitism at UCLA and follows the university’s March initiative to combat antisemitism, as well as a recent settlement over allegations that Jewish students were targeted during 2024 pro-Palestinian protests.

University of California President James B. Milliken called the $1 billion demand a “nonstarter” that would “devastate” the UC system, but said the school is reviewing the proposal.

California state Sen. Scott Wiener criticized the plan as “morally unacceptable” and “mob boss behavior,” while acknowledging ongoing antisemitism issues on campus. The Trump administration has recently reached multi-million-dollar agreements with Brown and Columbia universities and is still engaged in lawsuits with Harvard.

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