Trump Administration Walks Back Federal Funding Freeze Plan

President Donald Trump’s administration has pulled back on Wednesday its plans to pause spending on federal assistance, grants and loans amid widespread questions and opposition.

The Associated Press reported that the White House’s Office of Management and Budget on Wednesday countermanded a memo issued earlier this week that sparked the controversy.  

On Monday, OMB officials issued a memo that said the administration would start on Tuesday freezing federal funding as they review government spending and its alignment with Trump’s executive orders and the executive branch’s priorities. It was unclear how long the freeze would last and how the funding would be evaluated. Administration officials had said that federal assistance given to individuals wouldn’t be affected, including Social Security, Medicare, food stamps, student loans and scholarships.

The White House’s initial plan raised multiple questions and caused considerable concern throughout the country, including in Wisconsin. Gov. Tony Evers sent the president a letter on Tuesday asking to delay implementation of the freeze and for greater clarification about the scope of the plan, the timeline and what federal funding was going to be paused. 

“The Trump Administration will begin indefinitely withholding federal tax dollars from Wisconsin that were already approved by the U.S. Congress, leaving billions sitting in Washington, D.C. that help kids, families, and businesses in Wisconsin and across America every day,” Evers wrote.

The memo was also kicking off the beginning of a legal fight. A federal judge delayed implementation of the decision until next week and some organizations and states were preparing legal challenges to the administration’s decision. 

Evers released a statement Wednesday afternoon addressing what he called the Trump administration’s continued efforts to withhold Wisconsin’s already approved federal funds.

While the administration was rescinding the memo, the governor said Trump White House officials are continuing to move forward with implementing the policy.

“If Wisconsin’s federal funding continues to be threatened, delayed, and obstructed, make no mistake: I will continue using every power available to me to fight against those efforts to ensure Wisconsin’s kids, families, law enforcement, veterans, seniors, and so many others can continue to access the resources, services, and programs they depend on,” Evers said in the statement.

The governor urged administration officials to abandon their plans and focus on priorities that will actually help Wisconsinites.

The federal funds function as a financial lifeline for states, schools,  organizations and programs that rely on the money for their activities.

Stay tuned to Civic Media for continuing coverage.

Editor’s note: Melissa Kaye contributed to this report.