WASHINGTON – Inland Northwest leaders from both parties are expressing outrage at the federal decision announced Wednesday to withdraw $48 million in funding that was awarded in January to create an aerospace technology hub in Airway Heights.
In a statement announcing the decision, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said he believes the program “can ensure that critical industries, companies, and jobs start, grow, and remain in the United States,” but he had determined that the process to award the Spokane-Coeur d’Alene area and five other regions with grants was “rushed, opaque, and unfair.”
“Administration officials did not make prospective applicants aware of the competition and chose awardees using outdated applications submitted nearly a year earlier,” Lutnick said. “A rushed process using outdated information is no way to invest taxpayer funds.”
Sen. Maria Cantwell of Washington, the top Democrat on the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation and a chief architect of the legislation that created the tech hub program, ripped the decision by Lutnick to revoke funding, calling it an unnecessary delay for future aerospace jobs critical to the country’s economic success.
“Are they actually trying to lose the race? Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said at his confirmation hearing that he would not withhold previous awards from the Biden Administration,” Cantwell said in a statement. “This is causing us chaos and uncertainty in a race against world competitors to build high rate manufactured composites likely to determine which country wins the aerospace future.”
Rep. Michael Baumgartner, a Republican who represents Spokane, responded with a statement that called the decision “disappointing” and said it “puts the entire effort at unnecessary and potentially irreversible risk.”
“The Department is walking away from a selection process it has already completed, undermining the work of more than 50 committed local, academic, federal, and industry partners who stepped up in good faith,” Baumgartner said. “That said, if the Department insists on re-competing these funds, Spokane will be ready.”
Spokane Mayor Lisa Brown, in a statement, called the grant revocation “an unnecessary setback” to the economic viability of the region.
“This stunning reversal undermines the hard work of public and private partners who have spent years preparing for this investment and the economic opportunities it would bring,” Brown said in the statement. “This decision is a mistake for our regional and national economy. The $48 million in tech hub funding was a down payment to secure American competitiveness in aerospace manufacturing.”
Saying the Spokane region deserves better, Brown said she would be “calling on our congressional delegation to join me in demanding the Trump Administration reverse this decision.”
Baumgartner said the Airway Heights facility, which was slated to produce next-generation composite materials in the former Triumph Composite Systems factory that used to produce components for Boeing aircraft, “offers unmatched capabilities in aerospace materials, backed by the strength of institutions like Fairchild Air Force Base, Gonzaga, Eastern, and Whitworth.”
“I will fight to ensure this process is fair and transparent,” the congressman said.
The news is particularly harsh for Gonzaga, which was informed earlier this month by the Environmental Protection Agency that it will revoke a $20 million grant finalized to the the university last July to respond to climate change in Spokane.
Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the top Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee, called the decision “unprecedented and nothing short of an outrage,” accusing Lutnick and President Donald Trump of “wrongfully ripping away federal dollars owed to Spokane.”
“This would have never happened under nearly any other administration – yet now we are all faced with a pointless and costly setback for Spokane’s economy and future,” Murray said in a statement.
“Our constituents are losing $48 million for no other reason than Donald Trump’s absurd political games. Every single one of us should speak out – and the Trump administration should immediately reverse course,” she said, pledging to “do everything within my power to fight for Spokane and I do not plan to give this administration any cover for this outrageous decision.”
In a letter to Lutnick on Wednesday, obtained by The Spokesman-Review, Cantwell and Murray were joined by Sens. Jim Risch and Mike Crapo of Idaho, both Republicans, calling on the secretary to support the tech hub that promised to boost the economy of both states.
“We urge you to support this vital aerospace manufacturing initiative, which is already catalyzing a manufacturing renaissance in the Pacific Northwest,” the four senators wrote. “This is about America’s ability to reclaim critical manufacturing capabilities and our determination to lead the world in the technologies that will define this century.”
In his statement announcing the reversal, Lutnick said he intends to release a new call for applications in summer and announce a new round of awards in early 2026. In a separate fact sheet, the Commerce Department said it will review the program for compliance with Trump’s executive orders and applicants must remove from their applications any references to the policy priorities of the Biden administration, including “references prioritizing unions” and anything that conflicts with Trump’s energy policies or his opposition to diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.
The Commerce Department did not immediately respond to questions about specific objections to the Spokane-Coeur d’Alene tech hub, which of Trump’s executive orders may affect its award decisions and whether being previously awarded funds will have any bearing on the new round of awards.
Reporter Thomas Clouse contributed to this report.
