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After President Donald Trump moved to freeze all federal financial assistance, setting of a storm of confusion and panic Tuesday, local low-income housing providers are left wondering if they will be able to make upcoming payments as early as next month.

A memorandum released by the federal Office of Management and Budget, also known by the acronym OMB, on Monday directs all federal departments and agencies to temporarily freeze all federal “financial assistance programs and supporting activities.” The order excludes all assistance received directly by individuals like Medicaid payments, the Trump administration clarified yesterday according to the Wall Street Journal, but many observers say the move remains highly unconstitutional.

The pause in funding was scheduled to go into effect Wednesday at 5 p.m., but a federal judge blocked the order from going into effect. U.S. District Judge Loren L. AliKhan ordered a short-term halt to the funding pause that is scheduled to last through Monday but could be extended.

The Trump administration rescinded the funding freeze shortly after lunchtime Wednesday, the Washington Post reports.

“The court’s decision gives advocates and congressional champions more time to oppose this extreme order, which could prevent states and local governments, nonprofit organizations, and low-income families from receiving the critical resources needed to address our nation’s most pressing affordable housing and homelessness challenges,” National Low Income Housing Coalition interim President and CEO Renee Willis said in a statement issued before the memo was rescinded.

Rachel Heller, CEO of the Boston-based Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association said Wednesday morning that there are “huge” concerns about the ability to make payments in the coming days.

In an interview, Heller said eviction prevention and housing counseling programs could be on the chopping block, among others, due to the federal funding pause.

The pause could also see funding frozen for housing developments planned or already under construction.

“We all know that housing is so critical, and everybody is feeling the pain, and the federal government has always been a real partner in our affordable housing production and preservation,” she said. “So it would cause dealys and then it could potentially put a strain on our state resources, as the state tries to figure out, are there ways that we can make sure that these developments get completed. It creates a lot of unknown. Any freeze on these programs will have an impact on services and on housing production and housing preservation.”

The state Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development also serves as a major conduit for federal aid, via rental assistance programs. The department did not respond to requests for comment.

Homebuyers could also be effected. In a statement emailed to reporters, a DownPaymentResource.com spokesperson said that if the freeze is enforced, funding for roughly one-third of the nation’s 2,466 homebuyer assistance programs could see funding cut or eliminated. Federal funding via the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s HOME program is used for 469 programs, while another 265 rely on federal community development blcok grant funding, the spokesperson said.

With Massachusetts home prices and mortgage rates so high, first-time homebuyers often rely on down payment assistance programs to be able to afford to purchase a home.

Editor’s Note: This story has been updated with reporting that the Trump administration has rescinded its funding freeze memo.

Trump Funding Memo Causes Chaos and Worry in Mass. Housing Industry

by Sam Minton time to read: 2 min
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