The Federal Funding Freeze and FMF - Jan 30, 2025

Welcome to FMF’s new page to keep our community informed about the potential impact of a Federal Funding Freeze, especially on the families that rely on federally funded services.

On January 28th, we awoke to the news of a White House memo ordering a halt on payments from federal grants and other programs. Families Moving Forward depends on federal funding through the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to provide services such as rapid rehousing resources, shelter operation, case management and more. This announcement caused alarm and a wave of uncertainty as to how we would continue to meet the needs of families and children in Durham experiencing homelessness. We shared our concern in our January newsletter and, briefly, what the potential impact of the loss of this funding would mean to our operations and the guest families we serve.

As of now, the original memo has been rescinded, and a court order is in place to temporarily halt any funding freeze - but there is still confusion, uncertainty, and potential disruptive impact to families in our community. This is a fluid situation without a clear timeframe for resolution. The Board and Leadership of Families Moving Forward are working to develop contingency plans to address any potential loss of what amounts to nearly 25% of our anticipated revenue for 2025.

We are not discouraged. Our community of supporters continues to shower FMF and our families with hope and support. We are grateful for those who, within minutes of our newsletter hitting their inboxes, sent us donations, asked how they could help, and started organizing their own family and friends.

Likewise, we are appreciative of our partners at the North Carolina Housing Coalition, the National Low Income Housing Coalition, and the National Alliance to End Homelessness for their work gathering and distributing information, providing guidance, mobilizing a public response, and advocating for families, communities, and the non-profits affected. As we look forward, we will do our best to keep you informed on how you can continue to help support our families and community. Thank you for standing with families and FMF.