The White House Office of Management and Budget has ordered a review of federal funding for 14 Democratic-leaning states and the District of Columbia, according to various reports Thursday.
In a memo earlier this week, OMB called on all agencies except for the Defense and Veterans Affairs departments to gather data on federal spending in the targeted states to “facilitate efforts to reduce the improper and fraudulent use of those funds.” A worksheet is reportedly being provided to help states track all federal funding going to state and local government, universities and nonprofits.
The memo also states that the request complies with the law. “This is a data-gathering exercise only,” the memo reads. “It does not involve withholding funds, and therefore does not violate any court order.”
Still, the effort heightens concerns that the Trump administration could withhold federal funding in states perceived as political enemies by the White House.
The 14 states are California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia and Washington state. As CNN notes, all of the states on the list and the District of Columbia voted for former Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election, and most are led by Democratic governors.
President Trump has vowed to cut off federal funding as of February 1 for cities and states that limit local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement. In a recent speech at the Detroit Economic Club, Trump said the federal government would cease to make “any payments to sanctuary cities, or states having sanctuary cities, because they do everything possible to protect criminals at the expense of American citizens.”
Democrats in targeted states have largely shrugged off the threats so far. “We will go to court within seconds, and we will win if he does this,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said last week.