What does the freezing of USAID funding for Vermont – vtdigger mean

The Trump Administration’s decision to freeze almost all US agencies for international development programs can threaten non -profit organizations and Vermont’s business.

The decision suspends funding for efforts for global development, affecting organizations that provide health care, disaster relief and economic support in more than 130 countries.

The Congress provided $ 66.1 billion budget loans for help in 2023

“USAID provides rescue assistance, healthcare, disaster relief and prevents them from conflict. It is moral, but it also serves our national security, “said Victoria Holt, director of the Center for International Understanding the College at Dartmut College.

Former mayor of Burlington Peter Clavel has previously worked for Tetra Tech/ARD, consulting and engineering focused on water, environmental resistance, infrastructure, renewable energy and international development. The company, which has offices in Winooski and Montpelier, has a long history of USAID funding, with the most recently providing a $ 5 billion award in October.

Tetra Tech did not respond to multiple comment requests.

Clavel said that the decision to free up USAID funding would “have a significant impact on Vermonters and the Vermont economy” and that its effects would feel far beyond the state.

“The number of life to be affected, jobs that will be eliminated, the career that will be destroyed is far, far larger than the number of USAID employees in Tetra Tech/ARD,” Clavel said.

“I ‘sure there are the are ways, there are reforms that could make it more Efficient and more Effective, But That of Any Governmental Agency,” Clavelle Said, Adding That The The Agency ” He lives and addresses hunger in countries around the world. “

American Senator Peter Welch, D-V., Sitted on the Senate floor on Tuesday to condemn freezing, warning that he purifies Vermont-based organizations that run USAID programs.

Welch said it was violating non -profit organizations, contractors and institutions for higher education in the country – organizations with “long history of humanitarian and USAID development”. He pointed to tetratech/ard; World training, non -profit, which provides global education and exchange programs; And the Afghan Alliance Vermont, an organization that supports the Afghans, a movement to the state as examples of affected organizations.

“Suddenly, from blue, without even an hour of notice, these organizations and others were forced to exclude programs and fire the staff without any idea what follows,” Welch said. “Many of their employees work abroad, where they are stuck, without even the opportunity to have the money to pay home.”

Welch criticized President Donald Trump and Elon Musk for their role in dismantling the agency, saying that this move was illegal, unconstitutional and devastating for the institutions with a long history of global help.

“It has a relatively small budget – less than 1% of the total federal budget – and is of great responsibility to support humanitarian, economic development and management programs in more than 100 countries,” Welch said. He also criticizes Musk’s lack of experience and his USAID feature as a “criminal organization”.

When asked about potential legal actions, the General Charity Organization of Vermont Clark wrote in a statement: “We are reviewing every enforcement order and a potential illegal act and this is near the top of the list. However, I cannot comment on the further. “