Progress on the White House ballroom is “ahead of schedule and under budget,” President Donald Trump said on March 29, speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One.

He also reaffirmed that all of the money for the construction has come from donors and the president himself: “There’s not one dime of government money going into the ballroom.”

This update comes despite legal challenges faced by the Trump administration, including a lawsuit from the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

That suit alleged that the administration did not receive appropriate public input regarding the government’s actions.

Near the end of February, Judge Richard Leon of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia denied a motion that would have halted the construction project, saying the plaintiff based its challenge on a “ragtag group of theories under the Administrative Procedure Act and the Constitution.”

The act in question is a federal statute from 1946 setting administrative law procedures for the executive branch and requiring the American people to be allowed input when federal executive departments engage in certain actions.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation asserted that construction of the 90,000-square-foot building, which began in September 2025, required that input, but the judge did not immediately agree.

However, on March 17, Leon voiced skepticism about the Justice Department’s argument defending the administration’s actions.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation has argued that the White House should have had congressional authorization for the change, while the Justice Department asserted that the change was an allowable alteration.

Leon called the administration’s argument a “brazen” interpretation, calling the White House grounds a “special place” and an “iconic symbol” for the nation.

“For 150 years, they wanted to build a ballroom at the White House,” Trump said aboard Air Force One. “It'll be the finest ballroom of its kind anywhere in the world.”

He also offered updates about changes to the plans for the building, saying that stairs on the south side were scrapped.

He also said: “[The building has] drone-proof roofs, ceilings—everything’s drone-proof and bulletproof. And unfortunately, we’re living in an age where that’s a good thing.”

There is no firm completion date as of yet, but Trump also announced that beneath the ballroom would be a “massive” military complex, which is also under construction.

“It’s become really beautiful, but it matches and fits the White House,” Trump said. “It’s also capable of handling the inauguration.”

Reuters contributed to this report.