DOJ closes Title VI review of Minnesota capacity grant after statute repeal

On July 7, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice announced it was closing a Title VI compliance review tied to Minnesota Department of Health’s “Capacity Strengthening Initiative” grant program. DOJ said it opened the review because the program used race, color, and national origin to determine which applicants received funding—and that Minnesota later ended the program.

What DOJ said it reviewed under Title VI

In its announcement, DOJ said Title VI prohibits race, color, or national-origin discrimination by recipients of federal financial assistance, including a state health agency. DOJ also described eligibility and priority terms it said were used in the Capacity Strengthening Initiative grant program, including:

• Limiting eligible grantees to organizations that worked with “people of color.”
• Providing “strategic consideration and gave priority” to proposals from organizations “led by populations of color.”
• Prioritizing awards to proposals tied to counties with a higher proportion of “Black or African American” and “nonwhite Latino(a)” communities.

What Minnesota changed to close the review

DOJ said Minnesota took corrective action after the Department notified MDH of the compliance review. According to DOJ, Minnesota repealed the program’s enabling statute and MDH confirmed the program had ended.

Why this matters for grant applicants nationwide

This case is about a Minnesota program, but DOJ’s takeaway is broader: when a grant program receives federal financial assistance, eligibility rules that treat race, color, or national origin as factors in who can benefit can trigger federal civil-rights scrutiny under Title VI.

For nonprofits and community organizations applying to state-administered public-health or “capacity building” grants, the practical question is whether application instructions, scoring rubrics, or internal guidance treat protected characteristics as eligibility or “priority” criteria—rather than using race-neutral criteria.

What to watch next

• Whether states revise eligibility language, scoring rubrics, or “priority” categories in future grant cycles after DOJ compliance activity.
• Whether applicants receive clarifications from state administrators about what criteria are considered acceptable under Title VI.
• How documentation of eligibility and evaluation is updated for the next round of applications.

Sources

• U.S. Department of Justice (Office of Public Affairs) — “Justice Department Announces Completion of Compliance Review After Minnesota Repeals Grant Program” (press release dated July 7, 2026)
• Minnesota Department of Health — Capacity Strengthening Initiative background page (program history; grants ended in 2025)