President Trump's attempt to freeze funding for thousands of federal programs has left sustainable transportation advocates with more questions than answers about how the pause will impact their priorities — and they say the time is now to demand clarity and action from officials who aren't prepared for whatever chaos will come next.
On Tuesday, a D.C. judge ordered a temporary stay on the implementation of a presidential memo ordering all federal agencies to "temporarily pause" spending or promising money implicated by a series of recent executive orders, which were aimed at curbing "DEI, woke gender ideology, and the green new deal," among other Trump priorities. Trump later rescinded the memo, but simultaneously said it remained in full force and effect urther adding to the confusion.
Some advocates, though, are concerned that not all federal agencies are abiding by the stay, which will only remain in effect until Monday — and that transportation agencies aren't actually receiving all of the money to which they are legally entitled under laws passed by Congress. (Streetsblog has reached out to the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials and several state DOTs for comment.)
"All the press is reporting is that a federal judge put a stay on this," said Beth Osborne, director of Transportation for America. "But do we actually know if that changed anything? Is the White House following the order, or are they quietly daring the judge [to stop them] — like, 'You and whose army'? I don't think they're outlaying funds. I have a friend who works for a refugee services nonprofit in Texas; they're not going to work."
Osborne added that even if the stay is being upheld, the American transportation system could soon face unprecedented disruptions, the scope of which few U.S. residents may grasp – and its implications for sustainable transportation, specifically, are even more unclear.
For one, the level to which U.S. communities rely on federal funding to keep the trains running and the highways paved varies wildly, with Nevada, for example, reporting that 61 percent of its total transportation budget comes from federal sources, while Oregon estimates it closer to one-third. Many states don't even maintain a public-facing portal that details where their money comes from, or just how disastrous a federal funding pause would be — though Osborne argued it might be time for them to start.
"You need to ask your local elected: 'Have you done an inventory of how much of our funding relies on the feds?'" she adds. "Then you need to go to your state and ask the same thing. You need to go to members of Congress and say, 'Is this program or this project I'm interested in going to be affected?' I don't know that anyone has the answers yet, but we need to make sure everyone asks the questions."
Even in states that are less reliant on federal funds to keep their transportation networks running, Osborne said sustainable transportation in particular could face significant turmoil in the years ahead — especially since it's unclear what the Trump administration actually meant when it ordered a pause to all "Green New Deal" and "DEI" spending, both of which are philosophies that guide policymaking rather than terms with firm legal meanings. (In a related story, new U.S. DOT Secretary Sean Duffy revoked a Biden-era rule requiring auto makers to increase the fuel economy of their fleets, citing the president's aversion to anything that can be linked to the Green New Deal.)
The Office of Management and Budget's spreadsheet of specific programs that were to be scrutinized included roughly 2,600 names, spanning a vast range of initiatives that traditionally fund sustainable modes, like $8.4 billion in federal transit formula grants, and those that traditionally fund autocentric uses, like $62.2 billion for highway planning and construction.
Moreover, Osborne said the orders could have big implications for programs not on Trump's list, too, like the ultra-flexible Surface Transportation Block Grant Program, which can be used to pay for the electric vehicle chargers Trump specifically targeted in one of his first orders.
"Are they going to go project by project and say, 'No, you can't spend it that way, even though the law says you can?'" Osborne added. "Do they consider all of transit 'the Green New Deal'? ... They're not saying [something specific like], 'The city of Parkersburg, West Virginia, is rehabbing its Main Street, and I think it should stop.' Right now, we can't tell if rehabbing the street in Parkersburg, West Virginia is a 'Green New Deal' or 'DEI' project, because they're speaking in code to their supporters. They're not speaking in a way that gives direction to government on how to implement or not implement the law."
Regardless of the actual scope of any possible pause, Osborne emphasized that even a brief federal funding freeze would mean potentially trillions in stopped projects, countless people out of work, and skyrocketing costs — even if Trump's memo claimed it would "promote efficiency in government."
"Projects under planning will stop," she added. "Projects slated to begin construction will be delayed. Projects under construction will be paused. Those working on those projects will be furloughed. They may have to come up with local or state funding to make up for the loss of money. If [the pause] goes on too long — even if funding is restarted — the delays will increase the cost for the taxpayer. And there's a possibility that funding that has already been outlaid — because the federal program is a reimbursement program, [where] you put the money out and then you seek reimbursement — well, maybe they don't get reimbursed."
Of course, because the U.S. has traditionally allocated 80 percent of its federal transportation funding to highways and only 20 percent to other uses, many of those projects are exactly the kind of deadly, polluting, community-destroying highway expansions that sustainable transportation advocates want to see paused — an irony, given the administration's deep ties to the oil industry. Until we know more, though, all advocates can do is fight to hold all levels of government accountable to the law and to the public interest — and educate themselves on what's actually going on under the hood of America's transportation system as best they can.
"It's created chaos, and that is the point," Osborne added. "And [if you're asking], 'Can they really do this?' They are. So that's been asked and answered. [If you're asking], 'Is it appropriate? Is it legal?' Well, we're not in that world anymore."
