Colorado AG Weiser promises legal action to halt Trump freeze on federal spending

Editor’s update: After a federal judge late Tuesday afternoon temporarily blocked Trump’s federal spending freeze until Feb. 3, the White House on Wednesday revoked its proposed spending freeze ahead of a wave of litigation.

Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser on Tuesday said he will join other state attorneys general in a lawsuit to reverse a Trump administration attempt to freeze federal spending that’s already been allocated by Congress for programs ranging from education to health care to renewable energy.

“The Trump White House freeze on congressionally mandated federal aid is reckless and unprecedented. This action takes the power of the purse away from Congress, violates the separation of powers, and is already causing massive harm in Colorado, undermining delivery of healthcare, education, and public safety,” Weiser wrote in a prepared statement.

“As attorney general, I will continue to defend Coloradans and the Constitution,” Weiser added. “This government funding shutdown is illegal and must be stopped by the courts. That is why I will join other state attorneys general in filing a lawsuit to do just that.”

The pause for review of money that’s already been allocated by Congress is being spearheaded by the executive branch Office of Management and Budget and championed by President Donald Trump.

House Assistant Minority Leader Joe Neguse, whose Colorado 2nd Congressional District includes Vail and most of Eagle County — which is more than 80% federally owned and managed — issued a sharp statement opposing Trump’s attempt to take control of congressional spending.

“President Trump’s OMB directive is lawless and unconstitutional — and the freeze in Federal funding that he is attempting will have dangerous impacts for millions of Americans,” Neguse said.

“The order threatens funding for law enforcement grants, farmers, Head Start programs for children, and countless other services and programs that Coloradans rely upon,” Neguse added. “House Democrats will stand firm in defending American taxpayers by opposing this unconstitutional order and utilizing every legislative tool available to uphold the rule of law.”

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis supports the AG’s lawsuit, issuing this statement:

“Governing is about delivering real results for the people we serve, not sowing chaos. This indefinite pause in Congressionally appropriated federal funding hurts children and hardworking families, jeopardizes American jobs and businesses, harms hospitals and safety net health providers, threatens road and bridge repairs, and impacts countless other programs. These federal investments help people and support good-paying jobs and our economy, and this sloppy action creates confusion that distracts from Americans’ real challenges,” Polis wrote.

“Since day one I’ve been focused on saving Coloradans money, expanding education access, reducing health care costs, and improving affordability for everyone in our state. I’m always open to ideas from anyone about how we can make government more efficient and better deliver for fellow Coloradans. Still, chaotic actions like this do not make our country better off.  We hope that this senseless action is reversed urgently before too much damage is done to people and businesses.”

Colorado U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper issued the following press release on Trump’s attempt to freeze federal spending for vital programs and the impact it will have on Colorado:

In a chaotic late-night, two-page memo, President Trump immediately froze federal grants and loans. While the order is blatantly illegal, below is a memo outlining what programs are being affected by this sudden, ill-thought out freeze of funding. 

“What does this mean for Colorado? Funding to our police departments, our hospitals, programs for homeless veterans. Nearly 9,000 kids in Colorado Head Start programs may be locked out. Trump is sacrificing working Americans,”  Hickenlooper said.

OMB Memo to Pause Spending: On Monday night, the acting director of the White House Office of Management and Budget sent a two-page memorandum to all federal agency heads directing them to “temporarily pause all activities related to obligations or disbursement of Federal financial assistance.” The order is set to take effect at 3pm MT today. The memo also requires that agencies review all financial assistance programs to ensure activities are “consistent with the President’s policies and requirements,” citing several executive orders directed to pause all spending on foreign aid, the green new deal, “woke gender ideology,” and DEI programs. Agencies must provide OMB detailed information on program spending by February 10th, and assign “responsibility and oversight” to a senior political appointee.  Below you can find priority programs and projects in Colorado that may be impacted by this pause.

COLORADO IMPACTS

The order is expected to impact tens of billions of dollars in payments for Colorado. Federal funds make up approximately 25 percent of Colorado’s total budget.

• The latest Biden administration data lists total IRA/BIL/CHIPS public investment in Colorado at $10.586 billion
• IRA/BIL climate-focused programs: Estimated $600M-$900M

Halts programs at Colorado’s rural hospitals: Pauses funding to increase health care access, support community health centers, treat substance abuse issues, and improve care quality for small rural hospitals and Critical Access Hospitals across the state. 

For example, some of the programs and areas that will be affected:

• $1,420,601 for rural hospital improvements and Medicare flexibility in Arapahoe County
• $1,250,000 to battle the opioid crisis and increase access to substance abuse programs in Moffat County
• $784,031 to help screen patients suffering from black lung disease Denver County
• $499,847 to battle the opioid crisis and increase access to substance abuse programs inAdams County
• $200,000 to improve access to health care providers in San Miguel County
• $100,000 to expand rural health care development in Archuleta County
• $100,000 to expand rural health care development in Mesa County

Additional programs paused include cancer research, rural telehealth options, and infectious disease preparation.

Medicaid portal down nationwide: Our office has heard from Colorado hospitals that the Medicaid payment system has been turned off. With Medicaid portals down, doctors and hospitals in Colorado are unable to receive funds through the system. Reports have circulated that other states are running into the same issue and have been shut off from Medicaid.

Takes food away from 40 percent of Colorado school kids: Halts federal payments for school breakfast and lunch programs. 40% of Colorado kids rely on these programs to stay fed and healthy.

Cuts off 83,800+ low-income families from heating their homes in the dead of winter: Halts funding disbursements for low-income Colorado families who rely on LIHEAP funding to keep their home warm this winter. In FY24, 83,800+ households depended on LIHEAP. 

25,000+ Colorado seniors will be unsure where their next meal will come from: Local Meals on Wheels providers are unsure whether they will be able to serve meals. 25,000+ Colorado seniors utilize Meals on Wheels to access food.

Strips $182 million from the budgets of our local public schools: Will strip Colorado public schools of $182 million in federal funding, straining the budget of our local public schools even further.

19,000+ kids unable to attend child care or Head Start programs: Facilities will not be able to access reimbursements that help provide low-income kids with the early childhood education, health, and nutrition that they need. In FY23, nearly 9,000 kids were enrolled in Head Start in Colorado. Head Start programs around the country are already reporting being locked out of the portal to access reimbursements.

Federal funding to provide child care assistance to low-income families will also be paused, with over 10,000 kids in Colorado between the ages of 0-5 were supported by Child Care and Development Block Grant funding last year.

Hits our farmers and producers where it hurts when food prices are already too high for working families: This threatens funding to programs that benefit producers and consumers alike, including the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program (LFPA). Since 2022, LFPA has contributed over $2M to local ag in Colorado, and enabled food banks to distribute over 1.2 million pounds of nutritious food to Coloradans in need. The order also pauses funding to agriculture research and meat, poultry, and egg product inspection. 

Pauses critical loans for thousands of Colorado small businesses: All SBA loans, including disaster relief, will be paused. This will cripple local small businesses as they will be unable to make payroll, their leasing payment, or more. Over 5,000 Colorado small businesses have been approved for SBA loans in the past three years.

Deny Colorado communities funding to fight opioid misuse: Last year, Colorado received $20.8 million to fund addiction prevention, treatment, and recovery services across the state.

Weakens our public safety and undermines our law enforcement: Pauses crucial funding used to prevent terrorism, hire more police officers, prevent school violence, and crack down on drug trafficking.

For example, some of grants that boost public safety in Colorado that will be impacted include:

• $12.2 million to the Colorado Department of Public Safety to prevent terrorism
• $9 million in Office of Violence Against Women grants in FY24 for Colorado organizations for victims assistance as well as state and local police 
• $680,798 awarded to Colorado Springs to reduce drug trafficking and drug production
• $336,629 for the Colorado Department of Public Safety to crack down on drug trafficking

Strips Colorado’s 365,000+ veterans of the support and resources they’ve earned: Halts funding for community-based suicide prevention efforts, organizations that provide care for veterans experiencing homelessness, and services for veterans living with disabilities or struggling with mental health crises. Health care programs that support family members of disabled veterans as well as educational programs, such as the Montgomery GI Bill and post-9/11 education benefits, will be paused. Funds will also be frozen for the VA Dependency and Indemnity Compensation, which supports surviving family members. Federal funding that helps veterans secure good-paying jobs through job training and support services is also threatened.

For example, organizations, such as the Colorado Coalition for Homeless, won’t be able to access their regular funding to help support veterans pay their monthly rent. 

Cuts off 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline: Pauses funding for the suicide and life crisis hotline that offers real-time support for those struggling with a mental health crisis, emotional distress, and alcohol or drug use. 

After our Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has already invested $5.3 billion in Colorado, all DOT grant programs will be paused and reviewed. Many Colorado projects are at risk, including all major programs impacting highways, aviation, safety, rail, and more.

Appeases China by allowing them to continue having a hold in our rural communication networks: Hickenlooper successfully secured $3.08 billion for the Federal Communications Commission’s Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Reimbursement Program, or the Rip and Replace program for short. Colorado was awarded the highest outstanding amount. That funding is now paused, leaving our rural small businesses in the dust and our telecommunications networks at risk.