There has been chaotic uncertainty around billions of dollars allocated by Congress. The Trump administration ordered a pause on — and review of — certain types of federal assistance. A judge blocked that freeze. But reports continue to emerge that certain parts of the government were not getting their money.As a result, hundreds and hundreds of people have lost their jobs, clinics and daycares across the country have been left wondering if they'll have money to operate, retirees have worried about getting their payments.But the United States is a country of transparency. And if you know where to look, there is a way to cut through all the confusion. Because there's this one big pipe from the US Treasury through which most federal spending flows.So, today, we discover a way to go look at that money pipe. And we'll look at some of the people and the programs on the other end of that pipe. And we tell you about a tool (it's at The Hamilton Project! Right here.) that you can use to follow along from home, right now, as this gigantic federal spending story continues developing and developing.Find more Planet Money: Facebook / Instagram / TikTok / Our weekly Newsletter.Listen free at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, the NPR app or anywhere you get podcasts.Help support Planet Money and hear our bonus episodes by subscribing to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy
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This is Planet Money from NPR.
There is a gigantic money pipe. This unfathomably large hose through which hundreds of millions of dollars flow every single day.
At least that's how we think of it. More officially at the Treasury, it's known as the secure payment system.
the federal government basically runs through that money pipe. Almost 90% of all federal payments flow through it. Payments to Medicaid and Veterans Affairs and Customs and Border Protection.
Payments to the Library of Congress, the SEC, the FCC, the FCIC. That's the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation.
Congress allocates trillions of dollars to go to specific parts of the government. And when those parts of the government need a chunk of their allowance, they request it. And Treasury sends it through the old money pipe. And then a few weeks ago, the pipe, what's the way to put this, got frozen, I guess, partially frozen.
The Trump administration ordered a pause, a freeze on a huge chunk of federal spending on federal assistance, grants and loans and subsidies, that kind of thing. saying, basically, do not request your funds. All of those need to be reviewed.
Then the courts blocked that freeze. But then, reportedly, some parts of the government were still not getting their money. Nobody seemed to know what was happening. And there have been enormous consequences amid all this confusion. Hundreds and hundreds of people lost their jobs. Clinics and daycares across the country don't know if they will have money to operate.
Retirees fretted about getting their payments.
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