Senate stopgap pauses OMB rule on political review of federal grants

Federal grant money bound for Alaska tribes, municipalities and nonprofits will stay under existing award rules through Dec. 11 under the continuing resolution the U.S. Senate passed Saturday, 90-6.

The stopgap bars the Office of Management and Budget from finalizing a proposed rewrite of federal grantmaking rules published in the Federal Register on May 29. The proposal would put senior political appointees in charge of awarding and terminating new and existing grants. OMB says the reviews would ensure awards align with presidential policy priorities.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski said the bill "pauses OMB from finalizing a controversial proposal that would allow political appointees to halt and veto grants based on partisan ideology rather than merit." She said a stopgap is "no one's preference, and certainly not mine," but added that without one, "we are headed for another shutdown that hurts Americans who rely on federal programs and services, as well as federal employees." The bill gives Congress roughly four months to pass individual appropriations bills and makes funding adjustments for programs like WIC "that families depend on to make ends meet."

Alaska has received $13.81 billion in federal award dollars across 16,330 awards as of July 23, according to USAspending.gov. The Alaska Municipal League asked OMB in June to withdraw the proposal, an earlier Alaska News article noted.

The U.S. Conference of Mayors called Saturday for Congress to block the rule permanently.