Trump ices federal funding

POTENTIALLY DEVASTATING

I think we can keep pushing forward, but we hope within the week we can figure out where we’re at with the freeze. At this point, we are still analyzing to determine how this affects us overall. The loss of any of this funding could be potentially devastating.”

Tom Schulz, Lee County Supervisor Chairman

LEE COUNTY – A federal freeze on grants, including local government grants, has Lee County officials searching for answers about how the freeze will affect local grants in place.
The largest, and most concerning, is the current construction underway for the Lee County Health Department/EMS Ambulance facility. That project is projected to cost about $6.5 million with about $3.6 million of it coming from federal grant funding.
The county is also using about $1.1 million in ARPA funding and at least $500,000 in private donations generated by the North Lee County Community Foundation.
Lee County Budget Director Cindy Renstrom said the county still has about $700,000 in county funding remaining to keep the project moving.
Lee County Supervisor Chairman Tom Schulz said construction is fully underway and those funds will dry up quickly.
“I think we can keep pushing forward, but we hope within the week we can figure out where we’re at with the freeze. At this point, we are still analyzing to determine how this affects us overall. The loss of any of this funding could be potentially devastating,” he said.
The county also receives federal grant money for the sheriff’s department overtime, secondary roads, operations of the health department, ambulance services, and some victim’s advocacy services in the county attorney’s office, Renstrom said.
Schulz said he hopes the freeze is handled appropriately and local governments aren’t put in difficult situations as a result of any early decisions by President Donald Trump.
“I pray that a level of sanity is returned and if the funding mechanism for state, local, and county government is to change, that it is done so in an organized fashion, so it’s not to create turmoil, including the inability to pay contractors, provide vital life sustaining services to those in need while leaving local governments and service-providing entities unable to meet the obligations made based on the promises of our government.”
A USDA Rural Development spokesperson said they have no information at this time, but would be in contact with counties when guidance is received from the national office in Washington D.C.
Representatives with Miller-Meeks' office didn’t immediately return calls for comment on the development.
Lee County Health Department Administrator Michele Ross said she’s in the same boat as everyone else in that no one has any real guidance at this point.
“We’ve reached out to our state consultants and haven’t received any information other than to hold tight,” Ross said.
She said they had a grant application into the Food and Drug Administration, and received notice today that that grant process has been halted until further notice. LCHD also operates several maternal and child health and nutrition programs through federal funding pass throughs.
Lee County Engineer Ben Hull said day-to-day operations aren't affected but he, along with state and federal highway officials, are closely watching developments. He said the county is currently finalizing a RAISE grant, or now BUILD grant, to replace a bridge on X32.
"Our day-to-day operations are not federally funded. But there are all kinds of tertiary effects to funding streams. In terms of direct allocations, the biggest thing will be the RAISE grant, which now I hear is the BUILD grant. That bridge on X32 is $1.2 million and the contractor hasn't been mobilzed yet, so we're monitoring that."
Fort Madison Finance Director Peggy Steffensmeier said the freeze won't impact the city's operations, but they do have some pending appropriations for sewer separation work, as well as some police overtime funding through the Governor's Traffic Safety Bureau.