A White House grant rule could put disability groups in conflict with voting law

The White House Office of Management and Budget has proposed barring federal grant money from voter-registration drives and vaguely defined “related activities.” The rule would take effect after the 2026 midterms, but ProPublica reports that disability organisations are already warning it would interrupt work Congress created and continues to finance.

The Help America Vote Act established grants for registering disabled voters, casting ballots and accessing polling places. Congress now provides $10mn a year to 57 nonprofit groups covering every state, Washington, US territories and Native American communities. Disability Rights Nebraska received $141,000 this year; its staff offer registration help while visiting nursing homes and assisted-living facilities to investigate abuse and neglect.

The restriction could create contradictory federal duties. Organisations helping people apply for Medicaid or food assistance are required by the National Voter Registration Act to provide registration forms, yet many also receive federal grants. Thousands of other nonprofits combine federal programme money with privately financed voter outreach. Even if the final prohibition is narrower, compliance uncertainty could persuade them to stop before the 2028 presidential election.

The affected work is nonpartisan. Disability Rights Nebraska says that among people it helped at one rural facility, 30% registered Republican, 20% Democratic and half nonpartisan or with another party. The likely legal question is institutional rather than electoral: whether OMB can use general grant rules to frustrate programmes Congress specifically authorized and funded. Litigation is expected if the proposal becomes final.