Colorado plans lawsuit over Trump administration federal funding freeze
Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser called the order “reckless and unprecedented”
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Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser said Tuesday that he will join other state attorneys general in suing over a federal funding freeze ordered by the administration of President Donald Trump.
The announcement came as the icicles from the freeze speared into Medicaid operations, education, transportation, law enforcement and other areas in Colorado.
“The Trump White House freeze on congressionally mandated federal aid is reckless and unprecedented,” Weiser said in a statement. “This action takes the power of the purse away from Congress, violates the separation of powers, and is already causing massive harm in Colorado.”
Colorado Gov. Jared Polis echoed Weiser’s comments in a statement of his own.
“Governing is about delivering real results for the people we serve, not sowing chaos,” Polis said. “This indefinite pause in Congressionally appropriated federal funding hurts children and hardworking families, jeopardizes American jobs and businesses, harms hospitals and safety net health providers, threatens road and bridge repairs, and impacts countless other programs.”
Colorado government agencies and programs receive billions of dollars every year in federal dollars — roughly $13 billion in this year’s budget, for instance, making up nearly one-third of the state’s total revenue.
The Trump administration ordered an indefinite pause on all forms of federal grants, loans and assistance, excluding Medicare and Social Security. But the order’s exact parameters remained unclear, leading to confusion across federal and state governments.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
