Update: A federal judge blocked the Trump administration’s order freezing federal grants and loans minutes before it was set to take effect at 5 p.m.
Earlier: Fairfax County officials are scrambling to assess how a new federal directive halting financial aid programs might impact local services and capital projects.
The White House’s Office of Management and Budget issued a two-page memo yesterday (Monday), ordering federal agencies to pause grants, loans and other aid. The move triggered immediate confusion and lawsuit threats as federal workers, state and local governments, nonprofits and other grant recipients tried to figure out what was affected.
The directive calls for a review of financial assistance programs to align with the Trump administration’s priorities, which include cutting government spending, rolling back diversity and equity efforts, and focusing on areas like energy independence and immigration.
According to the Associated Press, White House officials confirmed that Social Security, Medicare, food stamps and other programs that assist individuals aren’t affected.
In a tweet, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin, a Republican, said he had been told by senior White House officials that the grant freeze “does not impact individual assistance and will not interrupt disaster recovery efforts, school and childcare funding, healthcare for seniors or low-income families, funding for our roads, meals and lunches, or any of the other misinformation that has spread.”
“The partisan stunt to disseminate knowingly misleading information is dangerous fearmongering and completely wrong,” Youngkin said. “President Trump is doing what an executive should do at the beginning of a term, which is find out where the money is and where it’s going, not unlike what we did at the beginning of our term here in Virginia when we identified $1.4 billion in appropriated but unspent taxpayer money.”
I’ve spoken to senior officials at the White House and confirmed the temporary pause by OMB does not impact individual assistance and will not interrupt disaster recovery efforts, school and childcare funding, healthcare for seniors or low-income families, funding for our roads,…
— Glenn Youngkin (@GlennYoungkin) January 28, 2025
However, there have been reported disruptions to states accessing Medicaid funds, preschools getting Head Start reimbursements and housing providers obtaining voucher and rental assistance money, according to the Washington Post.
In a statement, Fairfax County officials said they are monitoring the situation but are still working to determine which programs or projects might be affected.
“Given the potential for direct impacts, county staff is actively evaluating the implications of this and other federal directives, executive orders and actions. This evaluation includes all aspects of government, with a focus on critical areas such as housing, immigrant and family services, health, nonprofit support, transportation and public safety. A dedicated Ready Team is collaborating to assess impacts on health and human services, considering the complex interconnections within those systems.”
The pause, which takes effect today (Jan. 28) at 5 p.m., halts both new awards and payouts on existing grants while federal agencies conduct reviews, which are due to the White House by Feb. 10. Fairfax County depends on federal funding for several major initiatives, including affordable housing programs, transportation projects and community services like food access.
Fairfax County Public Schools did not immediately respond to a request for comment on whether the funding freeze might affect its operations.
Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) called the move “illegal” and “unconstitutional” in a press release, warning it would harm millions of Americans and disrupt critical services.
“Donald Trump’s freeze on federal funds for medical research, disaster relief, student aid, child care, nutrition assistance, and so much more is blatantly illegal and unconstitutional. It will also very quickly harm millions of Americans and the U.S. economy if left in place. I have already heard from local organizations who depend on grant funding and are preparing to lay off employees if this freeze is not swiftly lifted.
“The Constitution gives Congress the power of the purse in clear terms and Congress has carefully circumscribed presidential authorities when it comes to spending money obligated by law. I am discussing legal and legislative remedies with my colleagues, and others harmed by this unlawful freeze are also pursuing legal challenges. I will fight this order every way I can, and I will not be alone. “I also note that Republicans in Congress know all of this is illegal and unconstitutional. They know it will have devastating consequences, including on their constituents. They have the power to halt all of this at any time, if they only had the courage.”
Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, newly elected to Virginia’s 10th Congressional District, described the decision as “reckless.”
“People have been calling my office scared, concerned, and rightfully confused by these dangerous and unnecessary federal funding freezes. Shelters have said they may have to close, veterans may not receive their benefits, seniors will not receive medical care, and kids will go hungry at school. These actions are unconstitutional, defy precedent, and I will do everything in my power to protect groups who will be devastated by these cuts.
He added that the directive “does nothing to help our federal deficit or lower costs” but would instead create additional taxpayer burdens.
Rep. Gerry Connolly, who represents most of Fairfax County and is now the Democrats’ ranking member on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, tied the grant freeze to policies proposed in the Project 2025 initiative published in 2023 by The Heritage Foundation, a right-wing think tank.
Though Trump denied supporting the document’s proposed policies while campaigning, his nominee to lead the budget office, Russell Vought, was among the Project 2025 authors. The playbook called for slashing federal spending, increasing the president’s power to fire federal workers, taking an “aggressive approach” on immigration and other measures that the Trump administration has already begun implementing.
“Project 2025 is no longer a policy document Republicans can run away from,” Connolly said in a statement. “It is Trump’s playbook for his first week in office. Freezing federal grants and loans that Congress approved, firing [inspectors general] without cause or legally required congressional notice, and implementing Schedule F is Project 2025. It is executive branch overreach and unconstitutional. Donald Trump is unleashing the carnage he says he deplores.”
Photo via René DeAnda/Unsplash
