Trump Admin Wrongfully Withheld Funds From Popular Energy Program: GAO

"The Trump administration ­violated the law by wrongly withholding funds for a popular Energy Department program supporting innovation, the Government Accountability Office said Tuesday.

The GAO said the Trump administration had violated the Impoundment Control Act by failing to spend $91 million budgeted for the Energy Department’s Advanced Research Projects ­Agency-Energy (ARPA-E). The program supports the research and development of novel energy technologies.

The GAO said the administration has since released the funds, which were part of the fiscal 2017 budget, but the report points to a tactic that Democrats worry could be used again for the nullification of spending already approved by Congress. "

Steven Mufson reports for the Washington Post December 12, 2017.