Supervisor Pruitt sounds alarm on economic threat of federal cuts, executive orders

Donald Trump became the President of the United States for a second time 19 days ago and immediately began to disrupt the federal government with a series of executive orders ordering a different way of doing business. The full scope of all that is going on is not yet known but there will be an impact on all levels of government.

There are at least two federal court orders seeking to block the Trump administration’s attempts to freeze federal funding for programs deemed to be objectionable such as elimination of any funding for programs involved with “diversity, equity, inclusion” as well as anything having to do with health care for people who identify as transgender.

Albemarle Supervisor Mike Pruitt of the Scottsville District took the opportunity on February 5 to tell his colleagues of his concerns.

“About nine percent of the Virginia economy in the workforce is employed in nonprofits and that is much, much higher in our area because we have [the University of Virginia], we have a lot of regional and environment nonprofits,” Pruitt said. “We have a lot of things driven by that engine.”

Pruitt said a lot of people’s lives are now in jeopardy because federal contracts are either under threat or have already been terminated by teams working under the umbrella Department of Government Efficiency.

“My closest friend yesterday had to lay off 30 people and is himself probably going to be furloughed for the next three months and then probably furloughed at the end of those three months,” Pruitt said. “I know this is happening to a lot of other people in the University who administer federal contracts.”

Pruitt referred the Board and the public to an article by Catie Ratliff in the February 5 C-Ville Weekly with more information. Ratliff also wrote an article in the February 5 edition on UVA Health’s decision to end all “gender affirming care” for people under the age of 19.

“Trans folks under 20 in our community, many who are adults, have had their care terminated by an illegal order,” Pruitt said. “This means a complete loss of access to their psychiatrists, an interruption to their medical care. That includes medication, hormones, that is being abruptly stopped mid-cycle.”

Pruitt said he’s fielded many calls from people who want legal representation, but he doesn’t yet have answers because the presidential declaration is still relatively new. For instance, some are concerned they will not be able to renew a passport.

The uncertainty pervades housing issues as well.

“There is in our budget 1,500 people who receive [federal] housing choice vouchers that allow them to live where they do,” Pruitt said. “[Albemarle Housing Improvement Program] is funded in large part by Community Development Block Grants and HOME grants through Charlottesville and the Thomas Jefferson Planning District Commission. And really importantly, the telecom initiative that we’re using to expand broadband throughout the county, while it is a state grant, it in turn receives money from federal grants and is not clear to me that that means there will be a potential interruption of work laying of line in Keene that is expected to come later this year.”

During the public comment period, the former CEO of the Jefferson Board of Aging said her replacement has taken over at a time when that agency is also concerned about the future.

“JABA is funded by the Older Americans Act,” said Marta Keene. “And so we are watching all of that very closely. And that didn’t scare her one bit. She’s ready to take it on.”

Judith Selzer is the new CEO of JABA and said she’s ready to fill Keene’s shoes. She told the Board of Supervisors that in this community, 31 percent of seniors live alone and ten percent are below the federal poverty level.

“The investment you make every day in your constituents across the county to ensure that they can get home delivered meals, that they can have our case managers help them navigate different difficult situations, that they can come to our community centers to have enrichment, that they can have community support, that they can get a warm meal and not be isolated or lonely at home are incredibly important services,” Selzer said.

Have you been affected by the potential of cuts? Please drop me a line or reach out to another reporter. Everyone will be affected in some way and this is a time for more conversation.

Before you go: This article was originally sent out as part of the Charlottesville Community Engagement newsletter in the February 7, 2025 edition. Both are functions of Town Crier Productions. You can support the work by purchasing a paid subscription or contributing monthly through Patreon. You can also send in a check or send an email, but drop me a line first!