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Washington County raises alarm over federal grant attestations; commissioners move to executive session
Summary
County staff warned commissioners that new federal attestation language tied to HUD, HHS and other grants could put roughly $130 million in fiscal-year funding at risk; legal counsel explained the role of the False Claims Act and the county voted to move into executive session to discuss exempt records.
Washington County commissioners heard detailed briefings on federal grant language that county staff say could jeopardize large streams of federal funding and agreed to move the matter into executive session for further discussion.
County finance and health staff told the board that the county expects to expend roughly $130,000,000 in federal funds in fiscal year 2025, with about 70% of that coming from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and roughly 90% arriving as direct federal awards. Staff said new contract and grant language being circulated by federal agencies, including attestations tied to executive orders and civil‑rights assurances, requires recipients to certify they will not operate programs that “advance or promote DEI, DEIA, or discriminatory equity ideology” and to comply with federal antidiscrimination laws.
The change matters because the new clauses attach financial liability and enforcement mechanisms to grant…
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