GAO Rules Trump's $810 Million Pocket Rescission Unconstitutional; Two GOP Senators Agree

The Government Accountability Office ruled on Tuesday that President Donald Trump's decision to cancel about $810 million in federal spending approved by Congress was unconstitutional. In a letter sent to Vice President JD Vance and top members of Congress, the nonpartisan watchdog concluded that the White House exceeded its authority and violated the Impoundment Control Act of 1974.

The administration announced the cancellation on Friday, using a rarely used maneuver called a pocket rescission. Under the tactic, a president asks to cancel funds so close to the end of the fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30, that the money expires before Congress can vote on the request. The White House said the targeted programs served illegal immigrants, funded diversity initiatives, or otherwise did not benefit American citizens.

The bulk of the cuts, about $567 million, fell on Health and Human Services programs that fund groups helping refugees, asylees and other noncitizens. Another $25 million was aimed at Education Department programs for migrant students, which the White House said had paid for things such as an "LGBT youth summit" and "Therapy for Latinx workshops." Justice Department Community Relations Service funding was also swept up.

The GAO wrote that "any spending cut proposed by the administration must be approved by Congress," pointing to the Constitution's grant of spending power to the legislative branch and the history of the 1974 law. The finding carries no direct penalty, but it gives lawmakers and any future litigants an official government determination that the maneuver was illegal.

Republicans joined Democrats in objecting. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, who chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee, said the White House's Office of Management and Budget "intentionally withheld these funds for months to execute this unlawful cancellation of appropriations that were approved on a bipartisan basis and signed into law." Sen. John Curtis of Utah said, "That job belongs to Congress, not the executive branch." Collins said she may add language to upcoming spending bills to block future pocket rescissions.

OMB Director Russ Vought rejected the ruling. He said the GAO had approved the tool in the 1970s and accused the agency of judging such moves differently depending on which party holds the White House. The dispute is likely to shadow this fall's government funding talks, since Congress must again pass spending bills to keep agencies open and some members now say they will not trust that funds they approve will actually be spent.

It is the second time this administration has used the tactic. A similar cancellation late in the last fiscal year also drew objections from lawmakers, and Tuesday's finding is the clearest official rebuke so far.