The federal government has frozen $2.1 billion in funding for Chicago infrastructure projects, Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought said Friday, citing concerns that the money could be used for what he described as "race-based contracting."
Vought announced the decision on social media, specifying that the pause affects the long-anticipated Red Line extension, which was set to break ground next year, as well as modernization work on the Red and Purple lines. "$2.1 billion in Chicago infrastructure projects—specifically the Red Line Extension and the Red and Purple Modernization Project—have been put on hold to ensure funding is not flowing via race-based contracting," he wrote.
