White House cancels $810 million in congressional spending days before fiscal year ends

The White House announced on Friday, September 25, that it is canceling hundreds of millions of dollars in spending that Congress approved, using a maneuver known as a pocket rescission days before the federal fiscal year ends on September 30. Senate Appropriations Committee Chair Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, said lawmakers were told of $810 million in cancellations “without warning or consultation,” according to CBS News.

The Associated Press, in a report carried by PBS NewsHour, described the total as nearly $1 billion. Most of the cuts fall on Health and Human Services programs that serve refugees and unaccompanied minors, the AP reported. The White House said $567 million is for services to refugees, asylees and other migrants through the department, and another $50 million is for several other programs that aid immigrants and noncitizens.

The administration also listed $70 million in what it called “Woke International Education” grants and fellowships, and $56 million in Housing and Urban Development programs, CBS News reported. The AP reported that the White House cited $28 million in Health and Human Services research grants that it called “outright harmful and blatantly ideological,” $9 million in debt relief for foreign countries, and $10 million from a minority business development program. Other targets included a Department of Education program for migrant students, a Department of Justice office focused on reducing racial tensions, and housing counseling services at HUD.

The White House said in a statement that “President Trump is committed to utilizing all possible tools to cut wasteful and harmful government spending that does not benefit American citizens.” The Office of Management and Budget described the cuts as focused on “the most harmful government spending,” the AP reported. The administration said the immigrant-services funds are no longer necessary because illegal border crossings have diminished considerably, according to the AP. The White House press release also noted that some of the affected organizations are led by people who worked in the administration of former President Barack Obama.

Under the Impoundment Control Act, a president may propose to cancel appropriated money, and Congress then has 45 legislative days to approve the proposal. When a proposal arrives late in the fiscal year, the money can expire before that period runs out. CNBC reported that the White House cited the Act as its authority, while the Government Accountability Office has stated that the law does not permit withholding proposed cancellations until funds expire if Congress has not approved them. The AP noted that the announcement came with five days left in the fiscal year and with the House out of session through the November election.

Collins, who is seeking reelection this year, said the funds were intentionally held back. She said it appears the Office of Management and Budget “intentionally withheld these funds for months to execute this unlawful cancellation of appropriations that were approved on a bipartisan basis and signed into law.” According to the AP, she also said: “Not only is the delay itself an impoundment that was not reported to Congress, but also it is a usurpation of Congress’s appropriations powers. OMB is an agency of the executive branch. It does not get to decide which programs are worth funding.” She added, “Any effort to rescind appropriated funds without congressional approval is a clear violation of the law,” and said she would work with colleagues to address “these illegal actions.”

Democrats also objected. Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the lead Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, called the action “theft from the American people, plain and simple,” and said Democrats had fought in recent spending talks to include language preventing the administration from taking over Congress’s spending decisions, but that Republicans declined. Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, said the administration is “once again trying to steal more money promised to communities across the country.”

The move is the second pocket rescission of the Trump presidency. A year ago the administration canceled $4.9 billion in congressionally approved foreign aid this way, the first use of the tactic since 1977, when President Jimmy Carter rescinded funds. The AP reported that the Trump administration argues the tool is legally permissible, and that the Carter proposal was made well ahead of the 45-day deadline.

Organizations and businesses that receive foreign aid funding challenged last year’s rescission in court, CBS News reported. The Supreme Court declined to block the cancellation, pointing to the president’s power over foreign relations, but did not decide the case on its merits. The AP noted that this year’s rescission targets domestic spending. The federal fiscal year ends Wednesday.