Traffic on 17th Street in downtown Denver is pictured on Feb. A two-page memo issued by the Office of Management and Budget on Monday announced the freeze, which appeared to apply to all federal financial assistance, including grants and loans, with the exception of Medicare and Social Security payments. The move could abruptly shut off funding for a vast array of programs administered by state and local governments and nonprofits, though Trump administration officials have offered scant and at times conflicting information about how broadly the freeze will be applied.
Public officials and leaders of community organizations across Colorado were left scrambling Tuesday to process the implications of the order, which β if upheld in court β would amount to a radical rewriting of constitutional precedent giving federal spending power to Congress. Joe Neguse, a Lafayette Democrat, said in a statement Tuesday.
Judge temporarily blocks Trump administration freeze on broad swath of federal payments. In a statement, Colorado Gov. Others provide block grants to nonprofit organizations like Meals on Wheels, which warned Tuesday that the funding freeze could halt meal delivery to millions of American seniors.
Shelters and other services serving unhoused Coloradans rely heavily on grants from the Department of Housing and Urban Development to operate. Along with Medicaid payment systems, there were widespread reports Tuesday that the reimbursement portal for the federal Head Start program, which provides grants for early childhood education, was down nationwide, though.
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