The Trump administration is planning to withhold some public health and transportation grant money from four Democratic-led states, according to The Associated Press. The report said the plan is designed to restrict funding as the federal government raises concerns over fraud and mismanagement of taxpayer dollars, while not releasing full details about the criteria or whether states could take steps to avoid losing money.
An Office of Management and Budget official confirmed to AP that the office is telling the U.S. Department of Transportation and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to cancel grants totaling more than $1.5 billion, AP reported. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the cuts on the record, AP said.
According to AP, the official provided only a partial list of programs facing cancellation, and some appeared to be selected because they do not align with the administration’s policies opposing protections for transgender people and diversity, equity and inclusion programs. Among the transportation funds AP said were targeted were money for electric vehicle chargers in the four states, research translating the Illinois commercial driver’s license test into Spanish, and funding for California to adapt to climate change.
On the public health side, AP said the health research grants included projects aimed at studying the health impact of specific populations. One example AP cited was a study involving groups in Chicago that AP described as disproportionately affected by sexually transmitted infections, including “adolescents, racial and ethnic minorities, and men who have sex with men.” AP also said a separate grant for California universities was aimed at “reducing social isolation among older LGBTQ adults.”
AP also reported that a $7.2 million grant for the American Medical Association, based in Chicago, appeared on the list. AP said that grant was noted because of the organization’s support for gender-affirming care for minors, a position that a Trump executive order opposes.
State officials said they had not received notice of the proposed changes as of Tuesday, AP reported. The offices of the governors of all four states—California, Colorado, Illinois and Minnesota—said they had not been contacted by the Trump administration about the plans, AP said.
In a statement, Jillian Kaehler, a spokesperson for Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, said, “Time and time again, the Trump Administration has attempted to politicize and punish certain states President Trump does not like,” and added, “It’s wrong and often illegal, so Illinois will always fight for the resources and services our taxpayers are owed,” AP reported.
AP said the administration has targeted funding in Democratic states before, and that courts have temporarily blocked other similar efforts. AP cited a judge’s recent ruling that the administration could not stop child care subsidies and other social service programs aimed at lower-income people in Democratic-led states, including New York, for now, AP said.
The report also pointed to a legal challenge over an effort to withhold administrative money for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP food aid, from 22 states that have not provided information on recipients, including immigration status, AP said. AP reported that a judge has been asked to decide whether cutting off funding would violate an existing court order barring the government from collecting that data for now.
AP further said the administration has threatened to halt federal money to sanctuary cities and their states and issued an order for agencies to compile data on 14 mostly Democratic-controlled states and the District of Columbia, noting that the four states in the latest effort were on that list as well. AP also reported that other federal money for Minnesota and Minneapolis has been targeted.