Forty million dollars of the St. Louis County budget comes from the federal government. Now, it seems, spending that large piece of the pie comes with caveats.
"There are new rules for what we have to do when we accept these federal grants," says St. Louis County Commissioner Ashley Grimm. "One that really struck me is the executive order around banning any work on diversity, equity and inclusion, including - and really targeted at - trans folks, as well as anything that would get in the way of ICE activities."
Funding that would help with roads, public health and human services, and more may very well be dependent on compliance with executive orders.
In lieu of changes from the federal level, local actions are being explored. "We need to be transparent with the public," says Grimm. "We need to make sure that we are telling the community, and that we as a community can come up with solutions and ways that we can support each other."
You can hear Community Connection every Tuesday and Thursday at 8am on Northland Morning.
