HARTFORD, Conn.- Connecticut yesterday became the first state to challenge the No Child Left Behind law in court, arguing that the centerpiece of President Bush’s education law amounts to an unfunded mandate from the federal government.

“Our message today is give up the unfunded mandates, or give us the money,” said the state’s attorney general, Richard Blumenthal.

The lawsuit raises the stakes in a heated fight between states and the Bush administration over the law, and experts say legislatures around the country will be watching the case carefully. Experts expect that states could vote to join the lawsuit or file their own.

The lawsuit argues that No Child Left Behind is illegal because it requires expensive standardized tests and other school programs that the government doesn’t pay for. It asks a federal judge to declare that state and local money cannot be used to meet the law’s goals.

The U.S. Education Secretary, Margaret Spellings, has repeatedly denied requests from Connecticut for more flexibility.

“Unfortunately, this lawsuit sends the wrong message to students, educators, and parents,” a department spokeswoman, Susan Aspey, said. “The funds have been provided for testing, but Connecticut apparently wants to keep those funds without using them as intended.”

The cornerstone of the law is standardized testing – something that Connecticut currently conducts in grades four, six, and eight. But under No Child Left Behind, the state is required to start testing children in grades three, five, and seven this school year.

State education officials say that they already know that minority and poor children don’t perform as well as their wealthy, white peers, and that additional tests aren’t going to tell them more.

Education Commissioner Betty Sternberg said the state has every intention of complying with the law while the court decides the merits of the case.