As we are writing this blog post, things are changing left and right. This is our most up-to-date information as of January 29, 2025, at 1:36 pm Eastern. And no, we are not being overly dramatic, things are changing by the hour this week, so it’s important to note the day & time.
According to news outlets, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Memorandum M-25-13 is rescinded. This was likely sparked by the lawsuits brought on by the National Council of Nonprofits, American Public Health Association, Main Street Alliance, and SAGE, as well as the two dozen states who were suing to fight against the funding pause.
While this is cause for a big sigh of relief, the reality is we are not out of the woods yet. Who knows what is going to be the next memo or assault on federal funding – whether it affects all of grant funding or just one program that is vital to your organization. It’s a good idea to understand what happened and how we should respond.
In the wake of the OMB Memo M-25-13, the “Temporary Pause of Agency Grants, Loan, and Other Financial Assistance Programs,” you and the nonprofits and agencies you serve were most likely scrambling to understand the wide range of implications. The temporary Federal court stay until Monday (February 3) only bought hours for billions of dollars that help feed children, research cures for cancer, and help communities decimated by fires and floods start to rebuild.
It’s normal to feel overwhelmed in turbulent, frightening times, but let’s do our best not to stay locked in that feeling. We both find the advice of keynote speaker and author Jess Pettitt especially helpful: PREPARE, RECOGNIZE, and RESPOND.
PREPARE by reading the full executive order HERE and listing out how your agency or clients could be affected. It’s important to go to the source document first and then to trusted sources for additional analysis. (If you’ve encountered a paywall with the link, then email us at hello@haydayservices.com and we’ll find another way.) The White House issued an update on January 28 with a few more bits of clarification HERE. These two documents in no way cover the full impact of halting all federal funding, but again, it’s good to have them as a starting point.
RECOGNIZE comes into play as your agency or client tracks where they are in federal grants or contracts around the remaining dollar amounts/outstanding reimbursement. You can further recognize and track the impact to the communities you serve by calculating how much of your work is funded through federal grants pass-through grants (maybe from a federal agency to a state agency, and then to your organization). You’re looking at dollar amounts, numbers served, and outcomes you’re already tracking. Document this.
RESPOND with:
1. a plan to manage costs in the short term and determine what can go forward without federal funding for at least the next 6-8 weeks. As grant and fundraising professionals, we have unique skills and a deep understanding of the communities, agencies, and nonprofits we serve.
2. a phone call to your Congressional Representative and Senator urging them to take action against this Temporary Pause that will cause extreme hardship for their constituents. If you don’t know who that is, look HERE. Remind them of the crucial role nonprofits play in the national and state economies with data found HERE.
3. a series of blog posts, newsletters, social media posts and individual emails, along with updates on your website about how people, animals, rivers, parks – whoever and whatever you serve – will suffer because of these presidential actions. Tell the stories of who and what has benefited from your programs recently. Remind your friends, supporters, donors, and yourselves of the amazing transformations taking place.
4. the launch of an individual donor campaign online, through email, or whatever is best for you to connect donors with how these mercurial changes will affect you and those you serve.
5. letters to the editor to local media outlets from C-suite executives, board members, about the severity of the situation.
Now is the time to share your skills in synthesizing technical information and developing timelines, revisiting program design, and analyzing budgets to help determine the best way forward for the communities you serve. Take a breath and remember your personal agency. You have the right to speak up for yourself and your agency or client and help others with facts and storytelling so that they can also speak up and speak out.
The order has been rescinded, for now. But it doesn’t hurt to be prepared for the next onslaught that may come. Getting your ducks in a row, understanding the impact of federal funding, and sharing with the world the usefulness of funding in our communities is the best way to survive any changes that may come our way. The tips shared above remain true yesterday, today, and tomorrow.
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