The Trump administration’s freeze on some federal spending has prompted more questions than answers about potential effects in Baker County, and Joe Hayes is among the Northeastern Oregon officials waiting for clarification.

“It’s very vague,” said Hayes, Baker County manager for Community Connection of Northeast Oregon.

The organization runs senior meal and Meals on Wheels programs and buses, and it doles out money, including federal dollars, to help seniors and low-income residents with housing and energy expenses among other things.

The Trump administration announced the freeze on Monday, Jan. 27. A federal judge blocked the president’s executive order on Tuesday, Jan. 28, a pause in effect through at least Feb. 3.

Late Wednesday morning, The Associated Press reported that the Trump administration had rescinded a memo from the Office of Management and Budget, but that the president’s executive orders related to federal funding remain in effect.

Trump wants to have federal agencies review grant and other programs to ensure they comply with the president’s priorities, such as not including diversity, equity and inclusion policies.

The administration said the order wouldn’t affect major federal programs such as Social Security, Medicare, food stamps and welfare.

What’s not clear is whether, or how, the order could possibly interrupt the flow of federal dollars to a host of other programs, including some of those that Community Connection operates.

Hayes said federal dollars account for approximately half of Community Connection’s housing and energy assistance programs, and about one third of transportation programs (the remainder coming from the state).

In the short term, Hayes said he doesn’t “have much fear” about interruptions or reductions in any local programs.

“I don’t see anything coming to a sudden halt,” Hayes said.

Most federal payments arrive once every three months or even less frequently, Hayes said, so a short pause in theory shouldn’t force Community Connection to reduce services.

As for meals, he said Community Connection of Baker County gets about $54,000 annually from the federal government through the Older Americans Act, out of a total budget of around $425,000.

A larger portion comes from donations and from the entree sponsorship program, Hayes said.

Andi Walsh, grants and public relations manager for New Directions Northwest of Baker City, which offers mental health and drug counseling, said on Wednesday that New Directions does “not have any grants directly funded by the federal government and therefore we are not at risk at this time.”

Walsh said it’s not clear, however, whether the federal funding freeze could potentially interfere with state grants that New Directions applies for.

Baker County Commission Chairman Shane Alderson said that although the county receives federal dollars for a variety or programs, as of Tuesday he had no information suggesting that Trump’s order would have an immediate effect on the county’s budget.

Both the county and Baker City rely heavily on local sources of revenue, including property taxes and, in the city’s case, water and sewer bills that pay to run those two systems.

Cities and counties typically do depend on federal and state financial aid, whether grants or loans or both, for major projects such as replacing a water pipeline or building a new wastewater lagoon, but the day-to-day operations typically are paid for with revenue from local residents.

Michelle Kaseberg, Baker County commissioner and the county’s newly appointed budget officer, said she has asked all county department heads to review their budgets to determine whether there are any possible short-term effects from an interruption in federal payments.

Kaseberg said on Wednesday morning that she doesn’t think the federal situation will have any short-term effect on the county’s operations, including its payroll.

However, the possibility that federal grants or other aid could be affected in the future could affect the county, she said, and in particular the emergency management and health departments.

Head Start

This federally funded program offers preschool for children in Baker and Union counties through Eastern Oregon University Head Start.

Cayla Mello, the program’s fiscal manager, said on Wednesday morning that she had learned that Head Start isn’t affected by the executive order, and that Head Start classes and programs are operating as usual in the two counties.

Schools

“A pause on federal funding would certainly impact the school district,” Lindsey McDowell, public information and communications coordinator for the Baker School District, said on Wednesday morning.

An interruption in federal dollars could potentially affect extracurricular actitivies and employees’ professional development, McDowell said.

“We’re working through that plan,” she said.

According to the district’s budget for the current fiscal year, which ends June 30, 2025, federal sources make up about 6.7% of the budget.