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Durham council urges lifting of USAID stop‑work order, cites local job and public‑health impacts
Summary
Durham City Council unanimously adopted a resolution calling for an immediate lifting of the stop‑work order on U.S. foreign assistance and the reopening of USAID, saying the decision has caused layoffs among North Carolina contractors and risks global and local public‑health programs.
Durham City Council on March 17 unanimously adopted a resolution calling for the immediate lifting of the federal stop‑work order on foreign assistance programs and the reopening of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
The resolution, introduced as a joint city measure, asks the U.S. Treasury to pay outstanding invoices to North Carolina organizations, urges the state attorney general to amend pending litigation to include USAID and the State Department, and directs the city to transmit the resolution to Durham’s congressional delegation, the state attorney general, and other federal officials.
The measure was prompted in part by public testimony from Brianna Clark Schwelm, executive director of the North Carolina Global Health Alliance, who told council members that local organizations and contractors are already seeing job losses. “We have already experienced close to 500 jobs lost,” Clark Schwelm said, adding that North Carolina is the fourth‑highest recipient of USAID funding in the nation and that the funding supports both local jobs and global disease surveillance programs.
Council members who spoke in support framed the resolution as both an economic and moral response. The resolution text cites impacts including paused public‑health work, halted university collaborations, and disruptions to North Carolina‑based implementing partners. The measure also seeks a congressional review of foreign‑assistance policy and urges protection for more than 1,750 Triangle‑area jobs tied to global development contracts.
The adoption was recorded as a unanimous vote by the seven council members present.
The resolution does not impose legal obligations on federal agencies. It is a municipal expression of concern and an advocacy step directed at state and federal officials and agencies.
Officials and community organizations said they will continue outreach to the city’s federal delegation and to state officials to press for a rapid resolution and for repayment of invoices owed to local partners.
