There is an apt observation about government budget-making: They are the clearest way to see priorities. That makes sense of course. After all, when it comes to public spending, there are unlimited demands and limited funds. Balancing the needs of society with the available resources is the centerpiece of rational governmental budget-making.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This month, the President and the Congress have hammered out two deals that would drastically impact funding for federal programs: budget reconciliation<\/a> and rescission<\/a> plans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n With that in mind, the recently approved federal budget reconciliation<\/a> and rescission<\/a> legislation, advanced by President Trump and approved by both house of Congress, makes clear where their priorities lie.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The budget reconciliation agreement is the one that has the broadest impact, both in terms of the nation\u2019s finances as well as the effect on individual Americans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The reconciliation legislation, dubbed the \u201cOne Big, Beautiful Bill,\u201d covered a lot of issues. The ones that received the most attention are the changes to Medicaid (health insurance for the poor) and SNAP program (subsidies to purchase food for the needy), the elimination of federal spending on climate programs, as well as increasing the nation\u2019s debt ceiling<\/a> to $5 trillion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The changes to Medicaid will have a dramatic impact. According to estimates<\/a>, as many as 11.8 million Americans (including 1.5 million New Yorkers<\/a>) will lose their health coverage. The changes in the program create new obstacles<\/a> for beneficiaries, many of whom will end up dropping out due to the new requirements and the difficulty of submitting necessary information.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Moreover, the impacts go beyond those affecting people \u2013 hospitals, particularly rural ones \u2013 will feel it as well. A recent report<\/a> estimated that as many as one-third of all rural hospitals in the country are at risk of closing due to financial distress, including 29 New York hospitals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) serves 42 million Americans<\/a> and is the government\u2019s effort<\/a> to combat hunger in the country. Yet the legislation approved earlier this month will result in the biggest cut in its history<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A recent analysis<\/a> of the changes concluded that 22.3 million American families would lose some or all of their SNAP benefits. Among these families, 5.3 million would lose at least $25 in SNAP benefits per month, and most of them would be working families and families with children.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Of course, other items were included as well. These items touched on subjects like new fees for those applying to immigrate. Immigrants will now have to pay<\/a> a $100 fee to apply for asylum and a $500 fee to apply for temporary protected status<\/a>, which only applies to those unable to return to their home country due to \u201cextraordinary and temporary conditions,\u201d such as an armed conflict, environmental disaster or epidemic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Major changes were made to federal student loans. Loans for graduate school will be capped<\/a> at $20,500 per year and $50,000 per year for professional degrees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There are tax cuts for the purchase of gun silencers and short-barrel rifles, which will result in an estimated<\/a> $1.7 billion loss in tax revenue. From now on only machine guns and \u201cdestructive devices\u201d like bombs and missiles are federally required to be taxed $200 and undergo more intensive background checks and waiting periods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The federal changes contain changes to, or elimination of<\/a>, the majority of clean energy tax credits that were passed in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Climate researchers at Columbia University estimate that up to $9.65 billion<\/a> of the $62 billion appropriated in the IRA will be rescinded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Funds for building coastal management, monitoring air pollution and reducing it in schools, reducing the impact of climate disasters on low-income communities<\/a>, collecting data on greenhouse gas emissions, and standardization of corporate climate action commitments are all under threat of being revoked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n And the rescission package that passed last week eliminated<\/a> federal governmental support for public broadcasting and its educational programming, clawing back funds previously approved by Congress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Yet, the effort to reduce spending was not<\/em> about reducing the nation\u2019s debt; the legislation increases it and does so massively. According to the Congressional Budget Office<\/a>, the nation\u2019s debt would increase by $3.4 trillion<\/em> over the next decade. Moreover, the benefits of the changes go overwhelming to the wealthiest Americans, increasing<\/a> the tax burden for the poorest while enhancing the incomes of the richest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n