Trump Cancels $810 Million in Funding via 'Pocket Rescission,' Mostly Hitting Refugee Programs

The White House announced Sept. 26, 2026 that it would cancel $810 million in congressionally approved funding through a "pocket rescission," a maneuver that sends Congress a rescission request so close to the fiscal year's Sept. 30 end that the funds lapse before the 45-day review period Congress is entitled to under the Impoundment Control Act can run. More than half the cuts target the Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Refugee Resettlement; the rest hits programs Trump described as serving immigrants, minority groups and children.

The Government Accountability Office has previously concluded pocket rescissions of this kind are unlawful, since the executive branch impounds funds Congress already appropriated without following the law's required process. Lawmakers from both parties, including appropriators, criticized the move as an executive overreach that bypasses Congress's constitutional power of the purse.

The rescission proceeds administratively unless successfully challenged in court. No lawsuit had been filed as of this writing.