A federal judge Monday sided with a coalition of Democratic-led states that said the Trump administration is continuing to block congressionally appropriated climate funds, in violation of an earlier court order.
The administration must immediately restore money withheld under the Inflation Reduction Act and Infrastructure Improvement and Jobs Act, as well as other federal funds, wrote Chief Judge John McConnell of the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island in an order enforcing his Jan. 31 temporary restraining order.
His earlier order struck down the freeze — even after the Office of Management and Budget had rescinded a memo laying out a broad funding pause.
“The Defendants now plea that they are just trying to root out fraud,” wrote McConnell, an Obama appointee. “But the freezes in effect now were a result of the broad categorical order, not a specific finding of possible fraud. The broad categorical and sweeping freeze of federal funds is, as the Court found, likely unconstitutional and has caused and continues to cause irreparable harm to a vast portion of this country.”
