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Confusion spread in Oregon this week as state officials and others who rely on federal funding sought to learn how the Trump administration鈥檚 sweeping funding freeze affects them.

鈥淭here is complete confusion right now from the Trump administration about what they鈥檙e doing and what it means for Americans across the country,鈥� Gov. Tina Kotek said at a news conference on Tuesday.

At least one major Portland-based nonprofit group, Transition Projects, instituted a hiring freeze as it sought to understand if federal funding would resume.

U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan, responding to a lawsuit filed by nonprofit groups, issued a temporary order blocking the funding pause on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, Oregon joined 22 other states and the District of Columbia in a separate lawsuit filed in federal district court in Rhode Island.

Wednesday brought more mixed signals from Washington, D.C. The federal Office of Management and Budget issued a terse order rescinding the funding freeze. But then White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt appeared to walk that back, saying the White House was rescinding the OMB memo but not the funding freeze.

Already, the Oregon Health Authority and Head Start found themselves locked out of federal reimbursement systems. Transition Projects, which operates homeless shelters and related programs in Portland, also found itself unable to get federal reimbursement.

Transition Projects has two federal contracts. One, with the Department of Veterans Affairs, provides housing assistance, case management and legal help to veterans. Another, with the Department of Housing and Urban Development, provides housing assistance to nonveteran individuals. As with many federal contracts, Transition Projects is reimbursed by the U.S. government after services after rendered.

Transition Projects was unable to use federal reimbursement systems at times this week, and is still waiting to be paid, CEO Tony Bernal said Wednesday.

鈥淲e were able to put in some requests when the federal portals opened up, and we are waiting to see whether those will be funded,鈥� he said.

The Trump administration鈥檚 orders, Bernal said, 鈥渉ave brought a great deal of uncertainty about the future of our funding and whether or not we鈥檙e going to receive payment for services that have already been rendered or expenditures that have already been expended.鈥�

Bernal said he had put a hiring freeze in place at Transition Projects 鈥渦ntil we have clarity.鈥�

The funding freeze comes as Portland struggles to make progress on reducing homelessness, a major goal of new Mayor Keith Wilson.

Even less clear was whether grants for Oregon and Washington鈥檚 mega-projects would be affected.

Federal funding backstops Oregon鈥檚 construction, real estate and related industries in countless ways.

U.S. Department of Transportation grants are crucial to major infrastructure projects, such as the Interstate 5 Rose Quarter Improvement Project, which the Oregon Department of Transportation plans to begin constructing this summer. The project is expected to cost between $1.5 billion and $1.9 billion, and in March 2024 it was awarded a $450 million federal Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods grant.

The Interstate Bridge replacement project, projected to cost between $5 billion and $7.5 billion, also will rely heavily on federal funding.

Kotek said it was unclear if federal funding would flow to state programs.

鈥淭his is the challenge for us: We don鈥檛 know about other funding streams,鈥� she said.

ODOT officials referred questions to the governor鈥檚 office.

Federal reimbursement systems for Oregon Health Authority and Head Start programs were not working Tuesday, Kotek said. The OHA regularly seeks reimbursement for health care from the federal government, and state officials could not log on Tuesday, she said.

The federal Office of Management and Budget 鈥渋ssued a memo with no guidance, and they shut off reimbursement mechanisms in response,鈥� Kotek said. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 know what that means.鈥�

Kotek said the fate of other federal funding mechanisms is unclear.

鈥淗ere in Oregon, we know what is happening for certain programs,鈥� she said. 鈥淚鈥檓 hoping we don鈥檛 see any other freezes on funding like we鈥檙e seeing today. They need to turn all those reimbursement systems on so Oregon continues to receive the dollars that Oregonians paid into the system.鈥�

Oregon receives approximately $38 billion in federal funds annually, Attorney General Dan Rayfield said. It is unconstitutional, he added, for the president to refuse to spend money appropriated by Congress.

鈥淐ongress has the authority to spend, not the president,鈥� he said.

The federal government is a key transportation funder. Oregon receives about $700 million in funding from the Federal Highway Administration each year for construction projects. Federal highway funds flow through ODOT, which then distributes about 30 percent of those funds to local governments. Oregon also receives about $150 million in public transportation funding from the Federal Transit Administration annually, according to ODOT.

A spokesman for BRIDGE Housing, a major developer and operator of affordable housing, said the organization is 鈥渟till assessing the impact of this directive.鈥�

Mike Salsgiver, executive director of the Associated General Contractors鈥� Oregon-Columbia chapter, said he was not aware of any impact on construction funding. He noted the Trump administration鈥檚 memo referred to social issues unrelated to construction.

鈥淚 don鈥檛 think those things really affect us that much,鈥� he said.

In Portland, the City Attorney鈥檚 office, Grants Management Division and Office of Government Relations were 鈥渨orking to evaluate the federal executive orders and identify impacts 鈥� particularly to federal grant funding that has already been awarded,鈥� the city stated on its website.

Portland Public Schools, which is undertaking a round of high school construction, also appeared to have more questions than answers.

鈥淭he potential impact on PPS remains uncertain as the situation evolves,鈥� Superintendent Kimberlee Armstrong and Chief Financial Officer Michelle Morrison stated in a letter to parents.

Oregon also relies on federal funds to backstop affordable housing programs both through grants and rental assistance such as Section 8.

Federal funding from the Environmental Protection Agency also pays for Superfund cleanups in the Willamette River and elsewhere.