DORAL, Fla.—The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued a pause on outgoing federal grant and loan money on Jan. 27, requiring agencies to examine in detail how taxpayer dollars are being spent.
“This temporary pause will provide the administration time to review agency programs and determine the best uses of the funding for those programs consistent with the law and the president’s priorities,” the OMB memo reads.
“No later than Feb. 10, 2025, agencies shall submit to OMB detailed information on any programs, projects or activities subject to this pause.”
The White House clarified on Jan. 28 that the pause does not halt individual assistance programs like Medicare or the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, but is intended to curtail funding for programs that President Donald Trump has canceled by executive order.
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt noted on Jan. 28 that the World Health Organization was set to receive $37 million even though Trump withdrew the United States from that organization on his first day in office.
Another $50 million had been earmarked for condoms in Gaza.
“That is a preposterous waste of taxpayer money,” she said at a press conference.
The move provoked an immediate response from Trump’s opponents, who allege that it violates the Impoundment Control Act of 1974.
That legislation generally prevents the president from withholding funds already authorized by Congress, although these funds may be delayed in certain circumstances.
Before the order was set to take effect on Jan. 28 at 5 p.m. ET, U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan temporarily blocked parts of the order’s implementation until Feb. 3, pending further hearing.
The ruling was in response to a lawsuit led by the National Council of Nonprofits, as well as separate lawsuits from state attorneys general in New York, California, and Massachusetts.
Some GOP lawmakers attending the Republican Issues Conference in Dalios, Florida, have expressed support for the funding pause, noting that it will allow the new administration to ensure that federal dollars are being spent as intended.
“We’re going to learn who the Coalition for Green Capital is, so we’ll figure out who got $5 billion of your taxpayer money,” Rep. Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.) said.
Rep. Lisa McClain told reporters she is “excited” about the pause.
“I think it’s brilliant. I think it’s a long time coming,” she said, adding that she hopes “it sets a precedent” leading to better accountability of taxpayer money.
When asked about the perception that Trump was sidestepping Congress, McClain said she was confident Trump would “come back to Congress” to codify his changes into law.
Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.) told The Epoch Times that he understood concerns about funding initiatives that give assistance to low-income Americans, but he also reiterated the need for transparency and closer scrutiny.
“It feels great for Congress to say, ‘Oh, we’re going to help the needy with this social program,” he said.
“But then you find out a lot of this money that was supposed to be appropriated to help the needy is being eaten up in administrative costs, bureaucracy, improper payments. …Because I can tell you as chairman of the Oversight Committee, we requested a lot of information from the Biden administration. We never got anything.”
