More clarity is needed.

Ogden City Communications Director Mike McBride told the Standard-Examiner on Tuesday evening that city departments are still assessing what the potential impacts could be.

“As a city, we are monitoring,” he said. “The GFOA (Government Finance Officers Association) has issued notice indicating that they’ll provide updates. Other than that, the city’s just kind of tracking what’s happening as it progresses.”

McBride said the areas where city interests intersect with federal funds include Community Development Block Grants, Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act funding and Housing and Urban Development funds. American Rescue Plan Act funds that the city has been awarded are already secured and would not be affected.

Jer Bates, director of communications with the Ogden School District, told the Standard-Examiner on Tuesday the district also is just learning of the potential freeze and needs to assess what it could mean.

“This just got handed to us,” he said. “Any agency that receives federal grant funding — in particular, schools — we’re all in the same boat, eagerly seeking additional clarification on exactly how this will be applied and what exactly it will mean.”

He said that, based on his reading of the memo, he’s cautiously optimistic that Ogden School District won’t see a disruption in funds, but uncertainty still hangs in the air.

“Based on state regulations that were passed last year eliminating, by name, DEI — diversity, equity and inclusion — programs, by being in compliance with that, we would hope we would be in compliance with this new presidential order,” he said. “But even if not, we would certainly be looking at ways we could prepare for the quote-unquote worst-case scenario.”

But no matter what, Bates said, the Ogden School District remains committed to its students.

“We’re all going through a time of a lot of change coming from Washington,” he said. “Whatever change happens, it doesn’t change our focus, which is, ‘How can we best serve our students?'”

McBride said the city also is doing its best to stay on top of the evolving situation.

“All of our city departments that are relevant to this issue are aware of it and are tracking it to make sure that we respond accordingly,” he said.

The Standard-Examiner also reached out to Weber State University but was told officials were assessing the situation before commenting.