Congressional Community Funding Paused By President Trump

President Trump has told Congress he’s pausing all Community Project Congressional Funding, which will affect every community in the United States.

Non-profits and municipalities had until mid-March and early April to apply for funding through a grant process. However, now it seems those lengthy applications may have been submitted in vain.

“It’s going to impact every district in the country,” said U.S. Congressman Sanford Bishop Jr., who represents Georgia's Second Congressional District which includes Columbus.  “They are cancelling contracts, and they are resending funds.”

Even payment of funding already awarding is in jeopardy.

Bishop said he received a call and an email from Jack Hadley Black History Museum in Thomasville, Ga., telling him that their recently awarded grant has been cancelled.

“They were told it is no longer a priority of this administration,” Bishop said. “It’s crazy.”

Many local non-profits and municipalities depend on these funds to supplement fundraising and other budget shortfalls.

During FY2024, Girls Inc. of Columbus & Phenix-Russell applied for $1,434,232.87 and were told they would receive $500,000 to renovate and improve two youth recreational and after-school facilities in the heart of low economic distressed red zone areas of Columbus.

“We are very excited about and optimistic that we will still be able to receive those funds because we are needing them to be able to provide a safer environment for our community daughters,” said Danita Gibson Lloyd, interim CEO/COO of Girls’ Inc. of Columbus & Phenix-Russell. “These dollars are critical for our programs.”

These cuts are in addition to the other proposed cuts to programming that currently are being debated by the U.S. House of Representatives.

The budget call for cuts to Medicaid, SNAP, student loans and emergency housing vouchers for American families to offset tax cuts for billionaires, adding trillions of dollars to the national debt.

“I have never seen a more partisan and fiscally irresponsible budget,” Bishop said. “This measure will result in millions of Americans losing their health insurance. Seniors, children, people with disabilities and working families will bear the brunt of this budget’s harmful cuts. Public schools across the country – from rural to urban communities – will lose billions of dollars that help them afford teachers, textbooks and supplies. Cuts to nutrition programs will see families, schoolchildren, seniors, disabled persons and even young active-duty military families and veterans go hungry.”

U.S. Congressman Shomari Figures, who represents Alabama's Second Congressional District, which includes Phenix City, echoed Bishop's sentiment during a recent interview on Alabama Public Television's Capital Journal.

"We're seeing cuts to programs like SNAP and we're in a state where one in five household receive those benefits," said Figures, who is in the first 100 days of his first term. "We've already seen $16 million dollars in cuts directly to Alabama farmers who provide food for school lunches."

Figures said if Medicaid is cut the few rural hospitals that are holding on will lose their only stable funding source and will be forced to close, and cuts to SNAP could impact small grocery stores in rural counties who rely on people using SNAP benefits to keep their doors open.

Rising prices and federal cuts make the community grant funding program even more important for communities and the families who rely on them. Still, organizations are hopeful that the funding will be released; and Bishop and Figures said they will continue to fight for this crucial funding.

“Congressman Sanford Bishop has been an exceptional representative for our area,” Lloyd said. “He has been supportive of our mission at Girls Inc., and this means a great deal to our staff, our community daughters and the families of those community daughters. We truly appreciate all of his advocacy."