The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has restored a public database that shows how funding is apportioned to Federal agencies after a federal appeals court last week ordered the Trump administration to do so.
That data was restored last weekend after a unanimous order from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit went into effect on Friday.
“To hear the Government tell it, the separation of powers hangs in the balance and only this Court can set things right,” wrote D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Karen Henderson in the three-judge panel’s order. “But when it comes to appropriations, our Constitution has made plain that congressional power is at its zenith.”
The website was first pulled down in March OMB Director Russell Vought said that the system “requires the disclosure of sensitive, predecisional, and deliberative information,” and that those disclosures could “have a chilling effect on the deliberations within the Executive Branch.”
Apportionments are OMB-issued budget directives that divide federal funds into set amounts agencies can spend over time. They legally control spending and prevent overspending, and violations can trigger discipline or even criminal penalties.
Democrats said that while the website appears to have had information restored, some data is still missing.
“OMB must now ensure every last bit of this important budget data that has been hidden is promptly made public, as the court has ordered, and that the data is posted within days, as the law requires, going forward,” said Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., who serves as the vice chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee.
Protect Democracy – one of two non-profits that sued the Trump administration along with Democrats over the website – said in a statement on Monday that it is “actively working to analyze the new apportionments to ensure all the information that OMB is required by law to provide is once again posted publicly online.”
Reports from the Wall Street Journal said that OMB used its apportionment oversight to cut off funding for various programs, such as the National Institute of Health and Centers for Disease Control.
OMB had disputed the reports, saying withholdings of funds were accomplished legally.
“Apportionment information is essential for Congress, journalists, and members of the public seeking to better understand how federal tax dollars are being spent,” said Protect Democracy. “Public information about apportionments is critical now as the Trump administration continues to illegally withhold funding from federal agencies – including funds agencies must spend by September 30th.”
While the Trump administration’s motion was denied by the appeals court, it could still seek emergency relief from the Supreme Court.