Trump uses 'pocket rescission' to cancel nearly $1 billion Congress approved; Collins calls it illegal
The White House moved Friday to cancel nearly $1 billion in congressionally approved domestic spending through a "pocket rescission." Announced five days before the fiscal year ends, it leaves Congress no time to act. Most of the cuts hit refugee and immigrant services. Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins called the move illegal.
AI-assisted · US Brief desk · Sources listed below
What happened
President Donald Trump is canceling nearly $1 billion in spending that Congress approved, the White House announced Friday. It is using a rare and contested maneuver called a "pocket rescission" to eliminate money for immigrant services and diversity-focused programs, the Associated Press reported. ABC News put the order at roughly $800 million.
What's being cut: Most of the money comes from Health and Human Services programs that serve refugees and unaccompanied minors. The administration told AP those funds are no longer needed because illegal border crossings have dropped sharply. The White House also listed $70 million for what it called "woke" international education programs, $28 million in HHS research grants it described as "outright harmful and blatantly ideological," $9 million in debt relief for foreign countries that fund climate policies, and $10 million withheld from a minority business development program. Other targets included an Education Department program for migrant students, a Justice Department office focused on reducing racial tensions, and HUD housing counseling.
How the maneuver works: Under federal law, Congress has 45 days to consider a president's proposed rescissions before the money must be spent. By announcing the cuts with five days left in the fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30, and with the House out of session until after the November election, the White House made a vote all but impossible, AP noted. If lawmakers do nothing, the funds expire. The Government Accountability Office, an arm of Congress, says pocket rescissions are illegal.
Why it matters
The move adds to a broader effort to expand executive control over federal spending. AP said it fits a pattern that includes firing federal workers, imposing historic tariffs and starting the Iran war without going through Congress, which puts the burden on courts to define the limits of presidential power. With midterms weeks away, it also puts Republicans who defend Congress's power of the purse in a difficult spot.
What’s next
Watch for any legal challenge before the fiscal year ends, for statements from other Republican appropriators, for any formal GAO finding on this specific package, and for whether Democrats push to bar the practice in the next funding deal.
More context
Collins objects: Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, the Republican chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee who is in a tough reelection race, said the action came without warning or consultation. "Not only is the delay itself an impoundment that was not reported to Congress, but also it is a usurpation of Congress's appropriations powers," she said, according to AP. "OMB is an agency of the executive branch. It does not get to decide which programs are worth funding." She said she would work with colleagues to address "these illegal actions."
Democrats' response: Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the committee's top Democrat, called it "theft from the American people, plain and simple." She said Democrats had pushed in recent spending talks for language barring the administration from overriding Congress's spending decisions, and Republicans declined to go along.
Precedent: A year ago, Trump used the first pocket rescission in nearly 50 years to block $4.9 billion in foreign aid. The Supreme Court declined to block those cuts, saying Trump's authority over foreign affairs weighed heavily in its decision. This time the target is domestic spending. The administration argues the tool is legally permissible and points to a 1977 episode under President Jimmy Carter.
Uncertainty: It is not yet clear whether lawmakers or affected grantees will sue, or how quickly courts could act before the money lapses on Sept. 30. The Supreme Court's decision last year leaned on the president's foreign-affairs authority, which does not directly apply to domestic programs.
3 listed sources
- Associated Press via PBS News (Kevin Freking, Jonathan J. Cooper), Sep 26, 2026: Trump administration uses rare authority to claw back nearly $1B in spending approved by Congress
- ABC News, Sep 25–26, 2026: White House orders about $800M in funds rescinded; Collins calls it a clear violation of the law
- Bangor Daily News (AP), Sep 26, 2026: Collins response
References listed by US Brief; a source count is not a verification score.
Editorial sourcing notes
Facts and quotations follow the Associated Press (Kevin Freking, Jonathan J. Cooper), Sep 25–26, 2026, via PBS News, and ABC News reporting on the White House order and Sen. Collins's statement. AP describes the total as "nearly $1 billion"; ABC reported roughly $800 million. We show both with attribution and do not reconcile them. Program-level dollar figures are as the White House described them to AP. The legal status is contested: GAO calls pocket rescissions illegal, and the administration says they are permissible.
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