13-02-2025
Gov. Beshear says Kentucky is due over $7M in frozen federal funds, joins nationwide lawsuit
KENTUCKY (FOX 56) — Gov. Andy Beshear has joined 22 states in a lawsuit against the federal government demanding a solution to the federal funding freeze.
In a Team Kentucky update on Thursday afternoon, Beshear announced his name had been added to the ongoing litigation.
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The lawsuit claims that congressionally approved federal aid was unconstitutionally withheld through the freeze.
The funding freeze began with a Jan. 20 executive order in which President Donald Trump directed all federal agencies to impose a 'categorical, immediate, and indefinite pause on federal funds' until the programs could be reviewed to determine if the spending aligned with Trump's executive orders on issues such as climate change and diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.
Following the executive order, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued a directive implementing an 'across-the-board federal funding freeze extending to nearly all federal funding streams nationwide.'
The American people elected Donald J. Trump to be President of the United States andgave him a mandate to increase the impact of every federal taxpayer dollar. In Fiscal Year 2024,of the nearly $10 trillion that the Federal Government spent, more than $3 trillion was Federalfinancial assistance, such as grants and loans. Career and political appointees in the ExecutiveBranch have a duty to align Federal spending and action with the will of the American people asexpressed through Presidential priorities. Financial assistance should be dedicated to advancingAdministration priorities, focusing taxpayer dollars to advance a stronger and safer America,eliminating the financial burden of inflation for citizens, unleashing American energy andmanufacturing, ending 'wokeness' and the weaponization of government, promoting efficiencyin government, and Making America Healthy Again. The use of Federal resources to advanceMarxist equity, transgenderism, and green new deal social engineering policies is a waste oftaxpayer dollars that does not improve the day-to-day lives of those we serve
Matthew J. Vaeth, Acting Director, Office of Management and Budget
The OMB's directive was rescinded following the lawsuit's filing, per court documents. However, according to the lawsuit, the finding freeze's effects lingered even after the memo was rescinded.
'Defendants continued to implement the Federal Funding Freeze across myriad federal funding programs, as demonstrated through their repeated actions and communications, resulting in substantial disruptions across state agencies—both before and after OMB purported to rescind its directive. These disruptions only stopped (and even then, only partially) following a temporary restraining order from this Court,' the lawsuit reads.
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The lawsuit claims the freeze caused substantial confusion and resulted in 'immediate and devastating harm to Plaintiff States and their residents.'
'We've already seen the harms that this illegal freeze can cause,' Beshear said.
The Federal Funding Freeze purports to allow federal agencies to rescind hundreds of millions of dollars they have committed to pay and on which Plaintiff States' budgets rely—monies that are necessary for the Plaintiff States to ensure that their residents have access to childcare, quality healthcare, a clean and safe environment, the protections of law enforcement, the benefit of safe roads, access to workforce development, and assistance in the aftermath of natural disasters, among many other key services
Funding Freeze Amended Complaint filed on Feb. 13
Beshear has been outspoken on the freeze since the executive order's start, saying on X, 'I'm concerned about the federal 'freeze' of crucial funds that our nation's families depend on. Former Gov. Bevin tried this too. It wasn't legal then, and it isn't now.'
He said that for most of the day, Kentuckians weren't able to access the Medicaid system. Kentucky wasn't alone; Beshear said on Thursday that several states experienced similar issues.
'Without Medicaid, our rural hospitals would shut down, and so many healthcare workers would lose their jobs,' Beshear affirmed.
Furthermore, he noticed changes in the Appalachian Regional Commission account, which goes toward creating jobs and providing health care access and infrastructure in Appalachia.
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'We currently can't get more than $6 million in funds to repair abandoned mine lands where they present a danger to our people,' Beshear said.
He's compared the freeze to when former Gov. Matt Bevin attempted to cut the amount of funding universities were receiving that had already been approved and budgeted for. When Beshear served as the attorney general, he filed a lawsuit claiming the cuts were unlawful and won.
'For us as a state, this is important first because we take our constitution and the U.S. constitution seriously, but also, many of these programs operate on reimbursements,' Beshear said.
According to Beshear, Kentucky is due over $7 million in federal reimbursements at this time.
'That's what's frozen right now,' he said.
He affirmed that although the overall freeze has been blocked by a federal judge, the money still isn't flowing.
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'We're going to be aggressive; this is money that the people of Kentucky are owed,' Beshear said.
The lawsuit demands 'declaratory and injunctive relief to put an end to the Federal Funding Freeze.'
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