Co-author wants to put their current funding source in the acknowledgements section because they edited the paper In this situation there is a co-author that wants their current funding source added to the acknowledgements section because they edited the paper that others wrote. The research in the paper is something the co-author worked on as a graduate student about 5 years ago, but they have since become an assistant professor elsewhere and no longer contribute to the paper's research. 

The separate funding source they used several years ago to contribute to the data analysis for the paper is already listed in the acknowledgements.

The paper did not need major editing, but for the sake of scope - if the paper had needed major edits would that change the answer?

Never had this type of interaction before. I'm wondering if putting that acknowledgement would implicitly say that the co-author's current funding also funded the research in the paper. Maybe "Co-author was funded by Blank to edit the manuscript" is a middle ground?

The source of funding in question is the co-author's country's government - although unclear if it's a research grant or co-author's salary as a professor. In either case is it acceptable to "use" this money to edit manuscripts from previous work done and funded elsewhere?

First paper &amp; graduate student, to finalize the context.
In general, I would be pragmatic about this. If the contribution of the Assistant Professor is large enough to warrant co-authorship (which is a different story altogether, and not the question here), it should be large enough to mention their funding source. Presumably they have actually had to invest some amount of time into the manuscript to warrant co-authorship, and if they "used" their own university-funded research time or some external project time to contribute to the paper is really their own business.

Clearly this does not mean that you need to pretend like the entire work was funded by your co-authors grant, but a clause in the acknowledgements such as "Prof. X acknowledges the financial support provided by XYZ" is common and completely appropriate.


  I'm wondering if putting that acknowledgement would implicitly say that the co-author's current funding also funded the research in the paper.


Only if you word it poorly. 


  Maybe "Co-author was funded by Blank to edit the manuscript" is a middle ground?


This sounds very uncommon to me. I would only write it like that if you also explicitly list who paid for all other parts of the study (which would be highly unusual in my field).


  In either case is it acceptable to "use" this money to edit manuscripts from previous work done and funded elsewhere?


That's a question between your co-author and their funding source, and shouldn't really be your concern.