The Trump administration may put a freeze on all federal grants and loans.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced Friday that this may cut essential programs to millions of Michiganders for an indeterminate time.
This could affect Leelanau County, which has one of the oldest populations in the U.S. with about 42% of the county’s total population above 60 years old, as well as a significant agriculture sector — two groups that tend to benefit from federal aid.
Several local government agencies and nonprofit organizations said they are continuing to provide their services, but are waiting for more news on how they will be impacted and when the money will stop coming in.
U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan issued a restraining order to temporarily block the freeze Monday, saying the executive branch is violating the Constitution and trying to take control of Congress’s spending powers.
But despite this challenge and the executive office rescinding their initial order, AliKhan said some nonprofit organizations still can’t access federal funds.
According to the White House press secretary, this administration wants to freeze spending while they purge diversity, equity, and inclusion programs, Green New Deal policies, and “wokeness across our federal bureaucracy.”
But Michigan uses federal funds for much more than protecting the environment, workplaces, and trans people. They’re also used for food stamps, Medicaid, school programs, and senior care. A temporary halt on grants and loans could prevent these services from reaching the state.
Leelanau County’s senior services department provides resources and services to seniors. It is funded by a countywide millage, so Senior Services Director Lena Vander Meulen said a federal freeze would not directly affect the department. However, Vander Meulen said it could affect her department’s partner organizations, some of which receive federal funding.
For example, the senior services department contracts the Northwest Michigan Community Action Agency to provide Meals on Wheels to seniors. According to Bridge Michigan, Meals on Wheels for seniors is one of the programs that could be affected by the freeze.
At the time of writing, Vander Meulen said that none of their partners have backed out of their contracts with the senior services department, but they are paying close attention to the situation in Washington.
“I want to assure everybody that we will continue to monitor the potential impacts the freeze has on us – Leelanau County Senior Services and our partner agencies – and we will adjust as needed so we can continue serving our seniors,” Vander Meulen said.
Dan Thornell, health officer for the Benzie-Leelanau District Health Department (BLDHD), said that local health departments and the state’s Department of Health and Human Services have a lot of questions, but answers haven’t exactly been forthcoming from the federal government.
Thornell said the BLDHD provides a wide range of federally funded services, from safe drinking water administration to the women, infants, and children program. Despite their funding being under threat, Thornell said the health department is still providing these services as of Monday.
“For now, we’re continuing business as usual, and if we get questions, we’ll answer them as best we can. We have gotten no information from the state or federal government on how the freeze will affect our programs,” Thornell said Monday.
“If you have needs, by all means, continue to reach out and contact us,” Thornell said to county residents who need to use health department services.
Nikki Rothwell, Northwest Michigan Horticultural Research Center (NMHRC) coordinator, said the federal freeze could affect Michigan State University (MSU), its Leelanau County Extension Office, and the NMHRC.
Rothwell said the NMHRC uses United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) funds to study diseases threatening popular local crops like cherries and apples, including fire blight and root rot fungus.
“We’re playing a game of ‘wait and see’... We’re funded by USDA grants, and the MSU Extension office gets federal funding. We don’t know if that’s going to be affected. There are multiple federal grants that we’re relying on to do our research,” Rothwell said. “This administration isn’t big on climate change, and we have several climate changerelated grants.”
According to Rothwell, NMHRC researchers pay the costs of their work out of their own pockets, and they can typically expect the federal government to reimburse some of their expenses. She says they are far more reluctant to spend money with the possibility of an indefinite cut in their funding.
“Another thing that feels bad about this is all the uncertainty,” Rothwell said.
Winter construction continues in Fishtown on a cold February day. Enterprise photo by Brian Freiberger
