The Trump administration on Wednesday rescinded a freeze on billions of dollars in federal grants it announced this week, giving short-term relief to El Paso nonprofits, education institutions and local governments that were scrambling to react to the potential loss of substantial federal funding.
But the White House also pledged to push forward with efforts to align federal funding with President Donald Trump’s priorities, indicating that the end of the grant freeze was only a temporary pause in the fight over the future of federal spending.
“We still have a concern, but not as strong as yesterday morning,” John Martin, executive director of the El Paso Opportunity Center for the Homeless, said Wednesday.
Martin said he had not received any information about Trump rescinding the order – and was still awaiting details about how exactly the center might be impacted had they remained in place.
“This highlights the fact that we need to be cautious when we start or enhance a project that we can’t rely (on federal grants) for sustainability,” Martin said.
The organization operates several shelters, some of which are undergoing expansions totaling about $15 million funded largely through grants with federal ties. Martin said he’s particularly concerned about the city’s Community Development Block Grants, a program administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.
U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, an El Paso Democrat who serves on the House Appropriations Committee, said rescinding the grant freeze doesn’t undo the damage it caused.
“None of this changes that Medicaid portals were down, community health centers couldn’t access funding, and agencies and governments offering critical services in El Paso aren’t sure if they’ll be reimbursed,” she said in a statement to El Paso Matters. “Trump and Republicans are trying to eliminate jobs and cut programs to give billionaires big tax breaks. I won’t stop fighting for the resources and services our community earned and deserves.”
The Office of Management and Budget, which had issued a two-page memo to federal agencies Monday announcing the suspension of federal grants and loans, put out a once sentence memo Wednesday rescinding that order.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt put out a statement on the social media site X that did little to clarify the situation.
Leavitt also issued a statement saying the Wednesday memo from OMB was intended to end a legal challenge to the grant freeze, which led to a judge temporarily blocking the order Tuesday.
“The executive orders issued by the president on funding reviews remain in full force and effect and will be rigorously implemented by all agencies and departments,” her statement said.
The Trump administration has said it wants to target spending it finds objectionable, including for what it calls “Marxist” programs and what it classifies as spending that promotes “diversity, equity and inclusion.”
El Paso County Commissioner David Stout said it is good news that the order was rescinded, but the county needs to remain vigilant and needs to be prepared for a similar effort by the administration in the future.
“I think that they’re gonna try to figure out some other way to get what they want,” Stout said, adding he wants to have a legal briefing with county attorneys on what options they may have.
Stout said if federal funding is cut in the future there is no way the county can make up for the millions of dollars it would lose, not even with raising taxes.
“I really hope that they stop trying to terrorize cities and counties in our communities,” Stout said. “The amount of funding that our communities would lose would be just fatal and be detrimental.”
City Rep. Lily Limón said she is happy the order was rescinded, but does not think it is the last of such efforts.
“In this day and age, we have to be looking at Plan B and C – we cannot just sit back and say, ‘Well, it hasn’t, it didn’t happen right now, it went away,’” Limón said. “He’s not going to quit. He’s going to find another way to come and zap us.”
Limón said the city and county need to be looking at contingency plans and be prepared for future orders.
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