Trump administration’s politicized federal grant decisions violate the Hatch Act

The Trump administration’s admitted cancellation of federal grants and denial of government services to states or members of the public based on their political identity or voting record is a Hatch Act violation, according to a complaint filed today with the Office of Special Counsel by Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. The complaint asks OSC to start an immediate investigation and hold individuals involved accountable.

Since his first term, Trump and his administration have threatened or attacked Democratic-led cities and states using the powers of the federal government. At least twice in his second term, his administration has admitted that their decisions to award federal grants were politically influenced. In a court filing this past July in Thakur, et al. v. Trump—litigation challenging the administration’s cancellation of $7.6 billion in grants for hundreds of clean energy projects—the Department of Energy admitted that the Trump administration’s decisions were made “based solely on the political identity of the grant recipient’s state.” Meanwhile, hundreds of other energy grants in states that voted for Trump in the 2024 presidential election remained in place despite agency recommendations that they be canceled. 

“Partisan politics should never play a role in which states receive federal grant money or which members of the public get help from their government,” said CREW president Donald K. Sherman. “These grants provide resources that Americans depend on regardless of their political affiliation, and the law requires that they be administered without political bias. That is what the Hatch Act mandates, and by their own admission, the Trump administration has failed to abide by that requirement to the detriment of American workers and families.”

Congress passed the Hatch Act in 1939 to address political manipulations of federal relief appropriations for partisan purposes. The law prohibits any executive branch employee from engaging in partisan political activities—including those that support or oppose a political party—while on duty or in the workplace, and prohibits them from using their official positions to affect the results of an election.

Since the start of the second Trump administration, CREW has filed six Hatch Act complaints against senior Trump appointed officials, all of which OSC has yet to resolve. During President Biden’s term and President Trump’s first term, CREW brought complaints against senior White House officials resulting in OSC finding violations of the Hatch Act. CREW’s Hatch Act complaints led to OSC finding that Biden White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki violated the law and a recommendation that former Trump senior counselor Kellyanne Conway be removed from federal service due to her multiple Hatch Act violations.

“The administration’s admissions in court reflect a clear violation of the Hatch Act, and, even worse, a betrayal of the public they are supposed to serve,” said Sherman. “OSC cannot stand idly by and allow federal officials to misuse the power of the federal government to carry out political retribution. To do so enables real harm to millions of people. This conduct demands an immediate investigation and accountability for all involved in this partisan punishment of American citizens.”