White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed the pause on federal financial assistance will not include food stamps, Social Security, or Medicare and welfare benefits.
Following the announcement of a temporary freeze on federal assistance, ordered by the Trump administration’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB), Americans may be wondering if the freeze will impact them.
In a dramatic ruling just minutes before the freeze was set to take effect on Tuesday, a federal judge paused the federal funding freeze. U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan for the District of Columbia, appointed by former President Joe Biden, imposed an administrative stay on Tuesday afternoon.
AliKhan ordered the pause on disbursements be stayed until Feb. 3 at 5 p.m.
Before that ruling, in her first official press briefing Tuesday afternoon, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt clarified that the federal grants and loans pause will not impact individual assistance going directly to Americans.
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White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks at the daily briefing at the White House in Washington on Tuesday. (AP / AP Images)
The OMB confirmed the freeze does not apply to student loans and Pell Grants, as the order clearly states financial assistance to “individuals” is exempt.
The pause, which was set to take effect at 5 p.m. Tuesday and remain in effect pending a review by the Trump administration, would also not impact Social Security, food stamps, or Medicare and welfare benefits, Leavitt confirmed.
FOX Business previously reported the pause is limited to programs, projects and activities that may be impacted by President Donald Trump’s executive orders.
Some of those programs include diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), the Green New Deal, and funding nongovernmental organizations that contradict the national interest.
Karoline Leavitt, White House press secretary, during a news conference in the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2025. ( Samuel Corum/Politico/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
After agencies complete a comprehensive analysis of their federal financial assistance programs, which would be required by Feb. 10, they would be reviewed for consistency with the president’s priorities.
The memo noted the federal government spent more than $3 trillion on federal assistance in the 2024 fiscal year, according to previous reporting.
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White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt clarified what will be impacted by President Donald Trump’s freeze on federal assistance. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images / Getty Images)
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., previously told The Wall Street Journal that the freeze “will mean missed payrolls and rent payments and everything in between: chaos for everything from universities to non-profit charities, state disaster assistance, local law enforcement, aid to the elderly, and food for those in need.”
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FOX Business requested comment from Schumer following Leavitt’s remarks, but did not immediately receive a response.
The pause could be as short as a day, White House officials previously told FOX Business. Agencies can also request exemptions on a case-by-case basis.
Fox News Digital’s Danielle Wallace contributed to this story.
