Executive Office of the President, Office of Management and Budget Issues Memorandum to Pause Federal Financial Assistance
On the evening of Monday, January 27, 2025, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) within the Executive Office of the President (EOP) issued a memorandum to department and agency heads ordering them to pause all activities related to obligations and disbursements of federal financial assistance by Tuesday, January 28, 2025, 5:00 PM ET. This memorandum also orders departments and agencies, to the extent permitted by law, to cancel awards already awarded that are in conflict with Administration priorities. Financial assistance within this context includes:
- Grants;
- Cooperative Agreements;
- Non-cash contributions or donations of property;
- Direct Appropriations (Earmarks/Congressionally Directed Spending/Community Project Funding);
- Food commodities;
- Loans;
- Loan Guarantees;
- Interest subsidies; and
- Insurance.
This also includes open Notices of Funding Opportunities (NOFOs) and the associated review panels.
In the memorandum, Acting Director Matthew Vaeth made it clear that this pause is temporary and does not apply to activities related to Medicare & Social Security Benefits or other forms of assistance provided directly to individuals. There is no mention of Medicaid, which is a partnership between the federal and state levels of government. During the pause, department and agency leads are required to develop a detailed report on any programs, projects, or activities subject to this pause and submit that detailed report to EOP/OMB by February 10, 2025.
The Council’s Government Affairs and Legal Resources team will keep its members and the philanthropic sector abreast of developments, including as the February 10 deadline approaches.
Update: Tuesday, January 28, 2025
The EOP/OMB issued clarifying guidance on the memorandum that was issued on Monday, January 27, 2025. In the clarifying correspondence, the EOP/OMB noted that the pause does not apply to any program that provides direct benefits, which now includes mandatory programs like Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
Also, just before the pause was set to take effect, U.S. District Judge Loren L. AliKhan temporarily blocked the federal funding pause from going into effect. The order is in response to a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) filed by Council partners National Council of Nonprofits. The stay will expire on Monday, February 3, 2025, 5:00 P.M.
Update: Wednesday, January 29, 2025
On Wednesday afternoon, the EOP/OMB rescinded Monday's memorandum that ordered the pause on federal financial assistance.
