ST. LOUIS – Late last night, a memo went out from the Trump Administration ordering federal agencies to pause the disbursement of federal grants, loans, and other financial assistance to state, local, and tribal governments. In response, Mayor Jones issued the following statement:
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“This vague and legally questionable memorandum from the White House raises more questions than it answers,” said Mayor Tishaura O. Jones. “Federal funds support law enforcement, seniors, flood mitigation, affordable housing, and so many other necessary investments in our day-to-day lives. For President Trump to gamble with that shows a serious lack of leadership from this White House. Multiple City departments and offices have been activated to understand and mitigate the potential impacts and, with or without the president, the City of St. Louis will continue to work day and night to build up our community in every way we can.”
Further context:
It is unclear where the White House believes its authority to unilaterally halt much of this federal funding lies, as such funding is approved by Congress.
This memorandum does not prevent the City from continuing to invest federal funds already in hand, such as ARPA dollars that we are currently using to repave and calm 30 miles of arterial streets and much more.
Some of the programs under the City of St. Louis that have the potential to be directly affected by this pause include:
Law enforcement efforts for crime reduction and evidence collection for future prosecution of criminal cases.
Homicide investigations, which depend in part on employees supported by grants.
CDBG-DR, which helps with disaster recovery, home buyouts, home repair, and a flood reduction and infrastructure project at River Des Peres.
The Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program (RWHAP) and Housing Opportunities for Persons With HIV/AIDS (HOPWA)
The Mayor’s Office has been in contact with the City of St. Louis’ federal representatives to get a better understanding of how to push back against this order.
Mayor Jones established the Long-Term Revenue Advisory Council last year, giving St. Louis a mechanism to work through potential external threats to our City’s budget.
