Two days of chaos have seemingly come to an end, at least temporarily, with the Trump administration’s decision to rescind an Office of Management and Budget (OMB) order instructing federal agencies to immediately pause all grant, loan, and financial assistance programs.
On January 27, Matthew Vaeth, Acting Director of OMB, sent a memorandum, Temporary Pause of Agency Grant, Loan, and Other Financial Assistance Programs, to executive department and agency leaders. The memo instructed federal agencies to “pause all activities related to obligation or disbursement of all Federal financial assistance,” until they could conduct a comprehensive analysis. The administration sought to ensure that all financial assistance programs align with President Trump’s priorities as outlined in recent executive orders. Agencies must submit their required analysis to OMB no later than February 10.
For FABBS members, this meant that all federal grants and loans were immediately frozen, raising serious concerns within the scientific community as well as the general public. The White House issued additional guidance to explain that direct benefits to individuals would not be affected (e.g., Medicare, Social Security), yet failed to clarify many aspects and unintended consequences of the order. As a result, confusion and uncertainty remained.
Nonprofits, public health organizations, and several state Attorneys General launched legal challenges before the science community had the time to fully understand the potential implications of the memo. On January 28, Judge Loren L. AliKhan of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a stay against the directive. The stay, set to expire on February 3, only applies to programs that are already federally funded and does not affect the issuance of new funding.
Unexpectedly, the Trump administration rescinded the OMB order the afternoon of January 29. According to breaking news reports, strong pushback from Republicans on Capitol Hill contributed to the decision to rescind the order; however, the White House has not officially addressed the reason for this decision.
While this particular directive has been rescinded, it may be a sign that this administration plans to politicize how funds are spent, rather than deferring to respected, long-standing merit review processes.