MONROE — County officials are joining those nationwide in casting a wary eye on federal grants that may or may not be in the cross-hairs of the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) cost-cutting frenzy.
The extent of the potential liability in Green County is not yet known. But a meeting is set to be held Monday involving county officials from each department, who will attempt to calculate the potential impact overall, according to County Clerk Arianna Voegeli.
County Board Chairman Jerry Guth also pointed to such a meeting to help develop for board members and the public a bottom-line risk assessment. Still, he is nervous about the potential impacts of any such cuts on county services and projects.
Part of the problem, he said, is that local officials have yet to hear anything substantive from the federal officials.
“They really haven’t heard what’s going on,” said Guth “And uncertainty is never good.”
Meanwhile, the City of Monroe is also eyeing any grants for future projects — again which may or not be affected by the changes at the federal level.
Among those grants include funds contributing to a needed $35 million wastewater treatment plant; about $10.7 million for economic initiatives, including the effort to develop a subdivision near the new high school; and either a $23 million public works/highway facility, or a joint facility with the county that would come in at over $50 million.
City officials are in wait-and-see mode, even though they approved adding those projects to the capital plan recently.
“We otherwise have those projects in our capital plan and are preparing and exploring other appropriate funding sources,” City Administrator Brittney Rindy said, via email. “We have not received any communication that previously approved grants will not be reimbursed as promised.”
Guth said he fears even federal officials do not know the impacts that will hit local and county governments, as they are moving so fast.
“The federal government seemingly doesn’t know where it’s going,” he said.
And it’s not just the federal grants — School District of Monroe officials, who are in the midst of an $88 million building project that includes a new high school, said they were concerned that President Donald Trump’s upcoming tariffs might make materials and furnishings more expensive than anticipated.
But a representative of CG Schmitt, the district’s contractor, reassured board members the impact would be likely be minimal. For example, he said steel for the project — among the more expensive materials — had already been purchased/contracted.