Despite the fear of federal freeze, key Kern County services remain intact

February 4, 2025 /

With the recent news of President Trump’s newest executive order to freeze federal funding, many organizations and people in Kern County are questioning what this means for the community.

From non-profit organizations to college campuses that rely on federal funding, there was confusion within Kern County about how this decision would impact the community.

One major organization in Kern County that offers dozens of programs—such as food assistance, food banks, Head Start, and migrant childhood programs—provides vital resources that could possibly be affected by the potential freeze.

“CAPK is still open and fully operational for all of our clients,” said Ernesto Leon, Communications Specialist for Community Action Partnership of Kern. “There is no program at the moment that has been impacted in a way that we can’t operate at full capacity.”

Leon shared that CAPK understands there are many concerns within the community, as they are a recipient of federal funding and grants. However, CAPK is actively navigating the development of the news.

Furthermore, after this announcement, there was also fear from local college students regarding how federal funding for higher education would be affected, as the OMB memo stated that other federal funding would freeze.

However, despite the confusion, Pell Grant recipients, at this time, will not be affected.

“Fortunately, the federal Pell Grant was not impacted,” wrote Chad Morris, Director of Financial Aid and Scholarships.

Morris also wrote that the CSU Chancellor’s Office clarified that the memo would not impact individual students who are recipients of the Federal Pell Grant and direct loans.

Despite Trump’s federal freeze order, U.S. District Judge John J. McConnell Jr. of Rhode Island issued a restraining order to temporarily block Trump’s executive order— as a federal freeze is assumed to impact government funding services severely. Furthermore, Judge McConnell ruled that the administration didn’t have the authority to pause federal spending across the nation, and some of the actions were unconstitutional. 

Currently due to the tension between the administration and judicial branch, the federal freeze is placed on a pause. It is unclear whether the freeze would take effect again in the near future. 

Despite what decision is made in the future, Kern County residents will not completely be out of vital resources such as financial aid for college and federal services that serve low-income families, and underserved communities.

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Jocelynn Landon

Jocelynn Landon (she/her) has been a staff reporter with Kern Sol since January 2025. She was born and raised in Bakersfield and is currently attending Cal State Bakersfield, working to obtain her bachelor's in Communications with an emphasis in Journalism. You can reach her at Jocelynn@southkernsol.org