PLANTATION, FLA. (WSVN) - Hours before a federal judge put a temporary pause on a recently-signed White House memo that halted some federal grants and loan payments, South Florida organizations were worried about the memo’s impact.
The memo caused widespread confusion across the country, including in South Florida, as many charity and educational programs wonder what it would mean for them.
“If it does come to fruition, it will have a huge impact on Broward County,” said Wendy Bourgault of Meals on Wheels South Florida.
While Meals on Wheels doesn’t receive federal funds directly, it provides a big help to programs that do.
“We help to fill the role of feeding folks on their waiting list because there are so many elders in Broward County who need food that there’s a waiting list,” said Bourgault.
She said many people across Broward need food and are in need of the programs that could be impacted.
“The need in Broward County is already is so huge. Our phones ring off the hook every single day with people that need food,” said Bourgault.
Organizations like Meals on Wheels aren’t the only ones worried, local officials like Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, is also watching this memo closely.
“We don’t have a full answer yet as to the impact on our budget, but we are concerned,” said Levine Cava.
Federal funding is used for lots of services, from public transit to early education programs such as the Head Start Program which has nearly 100 centers in Miami-Dade.
Other non-profits filed lawsuits against the Trump administration on Tuesday before the memo was set to be implemented.
But on Tuesday, the White House pushed back on allegations that the memo called for a blanket pause on programs.
“This is not a blanket pause on federal assistance and grant programs from the Trump administration,” said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
The White House said the temporary freeze will not impact all federal aid and that they were implementing this to ensure funding applies to the president’s new executive orders.
But here in South Florida, many people who serve the vulnerable are begging the administration for the continued help.
“We implore the federal government that has been such a backbone in keeping these folks out of the hospital, alive with these food programs, to continue funding this,” Bourgault.
As a federal judge has blocked the implementation of the pause, it will now have to go through the courts before it could go into effect.
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