At least three Connecticut state agencies have had federal funds paused or canceled as a result of President Donald Trump’s policies, officials said this week.
As part of his effort to reshape the federal government around his priorities, Trump has targeted a number of programs that he and his allies oppose, including those that his administration views as examples of “diversity, equity, and inclusion” or environmental justice. In some cases, federal officials refused to release funds despite court orders.
Less than a month into Trump’s presidency, Connecticut has seen tens of millions of dollars frozen for electric vehicle chargers, solar energy, and cancer research, as well as widespread concern about what funds the administration will target next.
The state’s Department of Transportation has put plans to install new EV chargers on hold after the Trump administration halted federal funding for the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program. The initiative, which was created as part of President Joe Biden’s 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, was expected to send $52 million to Connecticut over five years.
“We’re going to suspend the program, pause it, and wait for some more guidance,” state DOT spokesperson Josh Morgan said Thursday.
In a letter sent to transportation departments across the country on February 6, the Trump administration announced that NEVI funding would be suspended while the program is updated “to align with current U.S. DOT policy and priorities.”
Environmentalists and Democratic officials have criticized the action, alleging that the Trump administration is attempting to illegally withhold funds appropriated by Congress.
Meanwhile, Connecticut’s Department of Public Health is unable to access a $22 million federal grant that funds the Connecticut Tumor Registry, which studies cancer patterns in the state, according to spokesperson Maura Fitzgerald on Thursday.
Fitzgerald stated that the agency has received no communication from the federal government regarding the grant and does not know when — or if — the funds will be released.
“The situation kind of changes, day-to-day, week-to-week,” she told me.
Fitzgerald warned that if the federal government does not resume funding for the registry, the state may be forced to bear the entire cost.
According to Rob Blanchard, a spokesperson for Gov. Ned Lamont, funding for the state’s Solar For All grant, which seeks to expand solar energy in low-income and disadvantaged communities, has been paused at Connecticut’s Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. Another grant, promoting the use of heat pumps, had been frozen until recently, Blanchard explained.
A DEEP spokesperson stated that the agency is “fully committed to carrying out the important work funded through our federal grants.”
Some discretionary grants at the state Department of Labor were also paused, but all have since resumed, according to an agency spokesperson.
Notably, funds have been paused for more than just state agencies. Last week, the Trump administration informed Sacred Heart University that it would lose a $3.4 million grant for a teacher training program in Bridgeport and Stamford, with a focus on recruiting teachers of color to fill positions in “high-need areas.”
“We are disappointed that they revoked the funding,” Sacred Heart spokesperson Deb Noack stated. “This program addressed a severe shortage of teachers both in Connecticut and nationwide.”
This week, the Trump administration informed schools and universities across the country that they have two weeks to eliminate any programs that consider race in scholarship or hiring decisions or risk losing federal funding.
This week, the Trump administration also canceled a grant to the American Institute for Research, which had supported state and local efforts to improve educational outcomes, including in Connecticut. According to a news release from the US Department of Education, the program is “forcing radical agendas onto states and systems, including race-based discrimination and gender identity ideology.”
Earlier this month, the New Haven-based Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services laid off more than 20 employees in response to the Trump administration’s cuts to refugee funding. Other Connecticut nonprofits describe a state of limbo as they wait to see what Trump will do next.
When Trump took office last month, he signed a slew of executive orders aimed at aligning federal spending with his priorities, including an attempt to block funding for programs that practice “DEI” and an effort to reverse some of President Joe Biden’s policies promoting electric vehicles.
Many of Trump’s policies have faced legal challenges, and federal judges have repeatedly ordered the administration to release funds appropriated by Congress. In some cases, however, the administration has continued to withhold funds, resulting in what some observers now call a constitutional crisis.
Trump has defended his efforts to cut federal grants as an effort to reduce “tremendous waste, fraud, and abuse.”
Connecticut Comptroller Sean Scanlon said Thursday on WNPR’s “Where We Live” that his office will soon launch a reporting system for state entities to report paused or missing federal funding.
“We need to know what is exactly happening here on the ground,” Scanlon told the crowd.