By Michael V. Cusenza
A federal judge on Wednesday issued an administrative stay, temporarily blocking the U.S. Office of Management and Budget’s plan to pull funds to states.
New York City has received an average of $11.8 billion in federal grants over each of the past five fiscal years, according to Mayor Eric Adams.
While the Trump administration has reportedly rescinded the memo warning states of the funding freeze, that action arrived long after many NY elected officials blasted the 47th President.
“The administration’s decision to freeze federal grant funding for public safety agencies is dangerous and irresponsible. As a result, both the NYPD and FDNY risk losing critical federal grant funding. This directive is literally defunding law enforcement and putting our public safety at risk. A federal judge issued a temporary order late this afternoon halting this sweeping freeze on federal aid and the White House must comply without exception,” said U.S. Rep. Grace Meng (D-Flushing). “New Yorkers rely on the NYPD and the FDNY every day to answer the call when emergencies arise. Now, I am calling on the Trump administration to immediately unfreeze these federal grant funds to ensure that all first responders have the resources they need to keep communities like Queens safe and respond to emergencies without delay.”
Adams said, “New Yorkers’ federal income tax dollars are some of the highest in the country. For decades, we have worked with the federal government to bring a huge chunk of those tax dollars back to the five boroughs to pay for critical services New Yorkers rely on and to better the lives of our city’s 8.3 million residents. We are assessing the full reach of the administration’s announcement, as specific programs are not named in the memo. We are in touch with our federal counterparts as we continue to monitor this situation closely, and we will advocate firmly on behalf of New Yorkers whose lives are impacted by affected programs.”
Congressman Adriano Espaillat (D-Manhattan), chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, said he was “deeply troubled” by the OMB memo.
“This, following the Trump administration’s most recent attack on families, minority communities, students, and seniors is not only flagrantly illegal but is inherently rooted in racism and a contempt for our nation’s most underprivileged communities,” Espaillat added. “We will not remain silent in the face of such flagrant disregard for the fundamental values and ideals of who we are as a nation. The United States is a democracy, not a dictatorship. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus stands united and firmly in opposition to this unlawful memo, and I look forward to working with my Democratic counterparts on the House Appropriations Committee to ferociously fight back against this brazen attack on my constituents and millions of Americans across the nation. This latest, illegal OMB memo issued by Trump is an incitement and chaos move, which again proves that President Trump and Republicans are intent on prioritizing the interest of billionaires and corporations over those of working families, minority communities, students, and seniors.”
