Congressional watchdog says Trump administration can’t defy lawmakers to revoke $810M

The Government Accountability Office ruled Tuesday that the Trump administration must spend $810 million it had proposed canceling last week, finding the White House budget office lacks authority to claw back appropriated funds without congressional approval. GAO General Counsel Edda Emmanuelli Perez wrote that withholding funds this way 'subverts both the constitutional process for enacting federal law and Congress's constitutional power of the purse.'

OMB Director Russ Vought disagreed, accusing GAO of having become 'hyper partisan' and claiming the office reversed a 1970s-era opinion depending on which party holds the White House. The rescissions request targeted refugee assistance programs, a Treasury debt-forgiveness program tied to coral reef and tropical forest conservation, and a Minority Business Development Agency grant program.

The dispute centers on 'pocket rescissions,' where the administration submits cancellation requests in the final 45 days of the fiscal year and argues it can withhold the money regardless of whether Congress approves. GAO has rejected that reading before; the administration used the same maneuver in August 2025 to cancel $4.9 billion without congressional action.

The full dispatch is available from the source below.