Federal Funding Updates

March 10, 2025  |  1:50 p.m.

This week, the U.S. Congress must come together on a new spending agreement by March 14 to avoid a government shutdown. In the event that Congress cannot come to an agreement, SPSCC is planning in advance to cover impacted grant funding, such as BEdA, Workfirst, Perkins, and BFET.

As a financially stable institution committed to our community, SPSCC intends to keep all programs and staffing operating as usual during these uncertain times.

SPSCC will protect programs, staff, and faculty that are typically paid through these federal grant funds with local reserve dollars so that our operations and focus on students are not impacted for Spring Quarter.

We will provide further updates on this topic as more information comes available.

Feb. 4, 2025  |  11:20 a.m.

Here are your Federal Funding Updates for Feb. 4, 2025:

Late last week, White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) retracted the Executive Order to pause federal grant funding. Additionally, a court order ended federal agencies' implementation of the memo, stating:

• Federal agencies cannot pause, freeze, impede, block, cancel, or terminate any awards or obligations on the basis of the OMB Memo, or on the basis of the President’s recently issued Executive Orders; and
• Agencies may exercise their own authority to pause awards or obligations, provided agencies do so purely based on their own discretion—not as a result of the OMB Memo or the President’s Executive Orders—and provided the pause complies with all notice and procedural requirements in the award, agreement, or other instrument relating to such a pause.

With this news, SPSCC will continue to operate all programs and supports as usual.

At this time, we are ending communications regarding this issue unless there are major updates.

Jan. 29, 2025  |  9:37 a.m.

Here are your Federal Funding Updates for Jan. 29, 2025:

• Yesterday afternoon, a federal judge temporarily stopped the plan to pause federal funding. Further updates are expected early next week.
• We've done some initial analysis of federally funded programs at SPSCC and we will continue to closely track on them for clarity and updates.
• We feel confident that we can continue to operate all programs and supports as usual.

We will provide our next update on Monday, Feb. 3, or sooner if there are major or time sensitive updates.

Jan. 28, 2025  |  11:35 a.m.

SPSCC is aware of the Executive Order from the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to pause federal grants and loans.

Here is what you need to know today, Jan. 28, 2025:

• The federal funding pause does not apply to student loans and Pell grants, as confirmed by the U.S. Department of Education.
• All Winter Quarter financial aid and funds have already been paid out and dispersed to students.
• Currently, we are maintaining all programs and support as usual.

We acknowledge a variety of questions and concerns with this directive. We are awaiting clarity and guidance from resources at Washington’s State Board for Community & Technical Colleges, Office of the Attorney General, and Office of the Governor.

As implications and information become clearer, our priority is to keep you informed and support you. This is our commitment to you:

• SPSCC’s Executive Leadership Team will meet each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday to debrief and share updates that are relevant to our SPSCC community.
• We will communicate updates in a time-stamped format on the SPSCC website and via email to All Staff & Faculty and All Students.
• We remain committed to our students’ safety, rights, privacy, and access to education.

This is our commitment to you:

• SPSCC’s Executive Leadership Team will meet each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday to distill share updates that are relevant to our SPSCC community.
• We will communicate updates in a time-stamped format on the SPSCC website and via email to All Staff & Faculty and All Students.
• We remain committed to our students’ safety, rights, privacy, and access to education.