The Agriculture Department’s $3.1 billion program to promote farm practices that reduce greenhouse gas emissions is caught in the crosshairs of the Trump administration’s pause on federal grant payments.
Organizations that received grants through USDA’s Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities during the Biden administration received a string of confusing communications from the department in the days following President Donald Trump’s inauguration. That’s adding to their concerns that the new administration may try to claw back money promised to grant recipients or hobble the effort in other ways.
While USDA tried in subsequent days to tamp down the worries — urging recipients to be patient as officials sort out the situation — questions remained about how the dozens of projects around the country would fare. Along with the Inflation Reduction Act — which is funded separately — the climate-smart grant program was a top priority in the Biden administration’s climate policy.
The program announced in 2022 involves 135 projects in 55 states and U.S. territories, and the money has already been obligated through contracts, USDA said before the change in administration.
