Federal Judge Rules Trump Administration Must Pay $2 Billion in Foreign Aid

WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Monday declined to order the Trump administration to restore thousands of foreign aid contracts and grants, which have been halted since the president took office. However, U.S. District Judge Amir Ali mandated that the administration expedite payments of nearly $2 billion for previously completed work.

Judge Ali’s ruling comes in response to lawsuits from organizations that either contract with or receive grants from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the State Department. These organizations sought legal action against the administration’s sweeping freeze of nearly all foreign aid payments, which was initiated following a January 20 executive order by President Trump.

“Today’s decision affirms a basic principle of our Constitution: the president is not a king,” said attorney Lauren Bateman, who represents two of the plaintiff organizations. “But we are painfully aware that, without unwinding the mass termination of foreign assistance awards, winning on the constitutional issues does not avert the humanitarian disaster caused by the Trump administration’s freeze on foreign assistance.”

In a prior ruling on February 13, Ali found the administration’s blanket freeze illegal and ordered it to be lifted. Yet, the administration maintained the freeze, asserting it was conducting an in-depth review of contracts and grants. By February 26, the government reported completing its review and had decided to terminate over 90% of its awards.

Judge Ali’s Monday order mandated that the administration pay approximately $671 million in invoices for work completed before February 13 by 6:00 p.m. EST, although it remains unclear whether this deadline was met.

Furthermore, Ali directed the administration to process past invoices of organizations not involved in the lawsuit at a rate of about 300 per day. The total amount owed to all foreign aid partners for projects completed before February 13 approximates $2 billion.

The White House and State Department did not immediately respond to media inquiries regarding the ruling’s implications.

This decision highlights the ongoing turmoil the Trump administration’s foreign aid freeze has created for humanitarian efforts worldwide, even as some payments have started to resume.