The Utah Department of Health and Human Services told the Social Services Appropriations Subcommittee on Oct. 14, 2025, that a string of federal grant rescissions and late awards has created uncertainty for several public-health programs and required agencywide changes to how grants are tracked and wound down.

The update, delivered by Nuna Phillips, senior policy adviser at DHHS, said five grants were rescinded in March — including three that ended more than a year early — and that additional grants have either been rescinded or ended without replacement, forcing staff to close out projects and adjust personnel plans.

"We are currently experiencing a period of uncertainty," Phillips said. "Where we may have seen grants continue or notices of award be issued on time, we're seeing some things change and we're trying to adapt to those changes." She told the committee the department has centralized tracking of grant issues, is identifying key decision dates, and expects operational units to have contingency plans ready.

The committee press for details about the scope of cuts; Phillips cited figures that the department had reported in a spring ARPA funding brief. She said the rescinded awards included roughly $4.7 million from the Substance Abuse Prevention and Treatment Block Grant and about $4.0 million from the Community Mental Health Services Block Grant. Two Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity (ELC) grants were cited in the ballpark of $85 million, and a program described as addressing COVID-19 disparities and advancing health equity was about $2.8 million. DHHS staff said those funds were funded through ARPA or other COVID-related federal streams.

When committee members asked how services were affected, Phillips said the ELC funding had been used to bolster the state's COVID response capacity and that the department anticipated those funds would end; Janae Duncan, division director for population health, added that the cuts primarily affect the state's COVID response and lab/epidemiology capacity. "This was funding related to responding to COVID-19, for the epi and lab capacity," Duncan said. "We were certainly using it to bolster our capacity in a variety of ways." She told the committee the department expected the funding to end but had not expected the timing to be so abrupt.

DHHS staff said the department has seen some notices of award arrive months late, has encountered changed grant terms and drawdown delays, and has factored executive orders and the possibility of a federal shutdown into planning. Phillips described the department's operational changes as an effort to "right-size" work and be intentional about one-time grant money.

The department did not present projections of future federal funding; Phillips said she had no specific predictions and emphasized that the agency was continuing to monitor funding availability and would adapt as information changed.

The committee did not take formal action based on the report but thanked DHHS staff for the briefing. Members asked the department to recirculate the ARPA funding brief referenced during the presentation for the committee record.

Ending: The department said it will continue centralized tracking and contingency planning and will provide committee staff any follow-up materials requested, including the spring ARPA funding brief that lists rescissions and affected programs. The committee left the item without adopting any new legislative directives but signaled interest in staying informed as federal funding decisions evolve.