The White House budget director, Russell Vought, announced on Friday that the Trump administration will freeze an additional $11bn worth of infrastructure projects in Democratic states amid the ongoing government shutdown.
Vought stated on social media that the US Army Corps of Engineers would pause work on 'low priority' projects in cities including New York, San Francisco, Boston and Baltimore, warning that the projects could eventually be cancelled.
The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) said President Donald Trump 'wants to reorient how the federal government prioritizes Army Corps projects'. The administration has already frozen at least $28bn meant for transportation and energy projects in Democratic-controlled areas.
Affected projects include a waterfront park in San Francisco, bridge expansions in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, and water and wastewater systems in New York City, which accounts for $7bn of the total. Other projects are in Illinois, Maryland, Oregon, New Mexico, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Rhode Island and Delaware—all states that voted against Trump in the 2024 presidential election.
The OMB noted that many of the projects are in 'sanctuary jurisdictions' that have resisted the administration's immigration crackdown. The Army Corps of Engineers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
