Yesterday, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) announced in a memo that the Trump administration would temporarily pause funding for federal financial assistance programs, following a presidential mandate to reform government spending. The initial letter did not explicitly mention Title IV funding, Politico reported that a spokesperson for the Department of Education noted that Direct Loans or Pell Grants qualify as direct financial assistance to individuals and therefore will not be impacted by the most recent executive order.
In addition, FSA just released GENERAL-25-09, which states: “The U.S. Department of Education is currently reviewing the full impact of the memo issued by the Office of Management and Budget on Jan. 27, 2025, to temporarily pause federal financial assistance programs. Per the memo, the pause does not impact “assistance received directly by individuals.” This includes Title IV, HEA funds, which are provided to individual students. We will provide additional updates as they become available.”
UPDATE: January 29th: The U.S. Office of Budget and Management released a memo (M-25-14) on Wednesday which states that the original memo (OMB Memorandum M-25-13) is rescinded.
SOURCES:
- OMB M-25-14
- (GENERAL-25-09) Guidance Related to Temporary Pause of Federal Financial Assistance Programs
- Politico: OMB Memorandum: Temporary Pause of Agency Grant, Loan, and Other Financial Assistance Programs
- Politico: Pell Grants, direct loans spared in federal aid freeze, Education Department says