USAID contractors ask judge to hold Trump admin in civil contempt for violating order to lift spending freeze

A coalition of U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) contractors and nonprofits who claim President Trump's executive order to freeze foreign aid could irreparably harm their operations have asked a federal judge to hold the Trump administration in civil contempt.

The request comes after the administration said in court filings that it is not paying out funds for thousands of foreign aid grants and contracts despite the judge's order to lift the sweeping freeze.

"This Court should not brook such brazen defiance of the express terms of its order," wrote Lauren Bateman, a lawyer for the plaintiffs.

The contractors sued the Trump administration earlier this month, alleging they were collectively waiting on hundreds of millions of dollars in outstanding invoices from the government. Two other nonprofits then filed a complaint alleging Trump's executive order violated the separation of powers and has caused irreparable harm to their operations, which rely heavily on USAID funding.

Last week, U.S. District Judge Amir Ali ordered the government to temporarily cease efforts to terminate foreign aid contracts and grants in place before Trump returned to the White House. He also blocked the administration from issuing or enforcing terminations, suspensions or stop-work orders in connection with any federal foreign aid awards in existence before Inauguration Day.

But late Tuesday, the administration wrote in court filings that keeping the aid frozen does not run afoul of the judge’s order, pointing to a line that reads “nothing in this order shall prohibit the Restrained Defendants from enforcing the terms of contracts and grants.”

The administration said it had “worked diligently” to comply and had “not yet identified” any termination, suspension or stop-work order on USAID contracts or grants that were not allowed under the judge’s order, given the apparent caveat.

The contractors and nonprofits called the government's assertion "remarkable," conveying disbelief that the government could conclude that terminating nearly all foreign aid was legal despite the court's "unambiguous" order.

They pointed to Trump's Feb. 15 commentary on social media that "He who saves his Country does not violate any Law" as proof the president sought to "flout his obligation to comply with the Constitution and the law."

"Here, Defendants are plainly in violation of the TRO," Bateman wrote.

The plaintiffs asked the judge to order the administration to comply and immediately reimburse foreign aid recipients, in addition to finding it in civil contempt.

USAID, which administers billions of dollars in foreign aid each year, has faced blistering attacks and has been systematically dismantled by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), seemingly spearheaded but not formally led by billionaire Elon Musk.

A different federal judge temporarily blocked the government from placing hundreds of USAID employees on administrative leave and recalling many from their posts around the world as part of a separate lawsuit. He is weighing whether broader restrictions should be imposed while litigation is ongoing in that lawsuit but has not yet ruled.

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