1. United States
2. Colo.
3. Letter

I am writing to urge you to take immediate action to prevent the unlawful cancellation of CDC public health grants that Congress approved with bipartisan support and President Trump signed into law on February 3, 2026. The administration's decision to cut more than $600 million in grants to California, Illinois, Colorado, and Minnesota represents a dangerous abuse of executive power that directly harms American citizens. These grants fund critical public health functions that protect all of us. In Santa Clara County, California, canceled grants support laboratory testing for diseases like Ebola, anthrax, and measles. In Chicago, HIV prevention programs are at risk. Denver's firearm injury reduction efforts and Minneapolis's programs providing access to affordable healthy foods face elimination. Dr. Sarah Rudman, director of Santa Clara County's public health department, confirmed that two large grants supporting core public health functions were abruptly canceled. What makes this particularly egregious is that these grants were included in Trump's own 2026 budget proposal and received a $10 million increase from Congress in the final law. U.S. District Judge Manish S. Shah granted a temporary restraining order blocking the cuts, noting that while the stated reason was misalignment with CDC priorities, the real motivation appears to be hostility toward Democratic-led jurisdictions. The Office of Management and Budget, led by Director Russell Vought, allegedly spent the last two weeks of January developing a hit list of funds to target in disfavored states. This is not how federal public health funding has operated for decades. Adriane Casalotti of the National Association of County and City Health Officials confirmed that all cancellations over the past 12 months appear to have been directed from OMB, outside normal procedures. Congress must assert its constitutional power of the purse. I urge you to take legislative action to prevent the executive branch from canceling appropriations that Congress has lawfully enacted. Our communities need stable, predictable public health funding, not political retaliation.