On Jan. 27, the White House office of budget and management circulated an internal memo written by the office’s acting director Matthew Vaeth, which stated that federal agencies “must temporarily pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all federal financial assistance,” according to CNN. This pause was set to take effect beginning 5 p.m. ET on Jan. 28.
After news of the pause was announced, several nonprofits (the National Council of Nonprofits, the American Public Health Association, the Main Street Alliance and Sage) filed suit on Jan. 28 in federal court to challenge the pause.
In a press briefing, also on Jan. 28, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt clarified that this memorandum is not a blanket pause on all federal grants and loans, but pertains to those specifically related to executive orders signed by President Trump.
Additionally, the original memo states that the budget office “may grant exceptions allowing federal agencies to issue new awards or take other actions on a case-by-case basis,” and instructs agencies to submit “detailed information on any programs, projects or activities subject to this pause” to the office of management and budget by Feb. 10.
As of 5:13 p.m. ET, CNN reported that U.S. district judge Loren L. AliKhan temporarily blocked the pause of funding from “open awards already granted by the federal government” until 5 p.m. ET on Feb. 3.
As Broadway News previously reported, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) announced the recipients of its annual grants on Jan. 15. The NEA is set to award $36,790,500 in funding to 1,474 individual artists and arts organizations.
It is not yet clear if any NEA grants would be affected by the White House’s initial order to pause funding.
As previously reported, institutions such as Broadway nonprofit Second Stage Theater, TDF, the Arthur Miller Foundation and more were in line to receive NEA funding this year.
Elizabeth Auclair, assistant director of public affairs for the NEA, told Broadway News in a statement: “The National Endowment for the Arts is currently reviewing the recent Executive Orders and accompanying guidance from the White House Office of Management and Budget to ensure compliance and provide the required reporting.”
Broadway News will continue to report this developing story.
