January 28, 2025

Last night I sent two emails at around 10:00 pm with headlines re: a Trump Executive Order that dropped yesterday at 5 pm ordering the (federal) Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to immediately pause federal financial assistance programs (see definition such as it is in the Memo attached).  The pause will begin at 5pm today.

On the Hill there is mass confusion about what that Memo means.

This morning I have been talking to Chuck Ingolia at the National Council and to our attorneys at Feldesman Leifer in DC.  Adam Falcone (our attorney at Feldesman) recommends that provider agencies with a direct federal grant with SAMHSA might want to take the following steps immediately:

For those with a direct grant with SAMHSA, consider putting in a drawdown request immediately before the ‘pause’ described in the Memo goes into effect.  There is no telling whether the funds transfer will be completed or not as they usually take a day, but it can not hurt to try.

I am waiting for the ‘client alert’ that has been prepared by Feldesman Leifer and I will send it as soon as I see it but in the meantime you may wish to take the action as discussed in the black ink (above).