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Detroit Free Press: Paused pause? Michigan reeling from potential threat to federally-funded program

January 29, 2025

Paused pause? Michigan reeling from potential threat to federally-funded programs

By: Clara Hendrickson, John Wisely, Arpan Lobo, Todd Spangler, Paul Egan

A move by President Donald Trump's budget office to at least temporarily halt federal aid to programs produced profound uncertainty on Tuesday, drawing condemnation from Democratic members of Michigan's congressional delegation and prompting the state's top law enforcement officer to join other state attorneys general in filing a lawsuit.

By the end of the day, the freeze on federal payments was at least temporarily delayed by a federal judge in Washington in response to a lawsuit from nonprofits, as the courts and those affected try to determine just what the memo means and if it passes constitutional muster at least on its face.

But that did little to clear up the confusion.

The federal Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) memo issued Monday ordered agencies to pause payments on grants, loans and other forms of federal assistance covered by Trump's recent spate of executive orders, including those covering programs related to gender, energy and the environment, and diversity and equity policies beginning at 5 p.m. Tuesday, according to a copy seen by Reuters. But it appeared to some to potentially go further since Trump's orders touched on myriad issues including government efficiency and declared emergencies in areas of border security and energy. The memo also ordered a review of federal payments "consistent with the president’s policies and requirements," which could have been interpreted as going beyond those orders, since more continue to be issued.

For many, it initially raised fears that other programs — including those serving nutrition or health care needs for poorer individuals or families — might be impacted. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt on Tuesday afternoon said that no individual assistance would be compromised but still left unclear just how widespread the funding freeze might be.

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