In Case You Missed It...

This week at CBPP, we largely focused our analysis on the Senate Republican leadership’s bill text for budget reconciliation, in the areas of the federal budget and taxes, health, food assistance, immigration, climate, and state budgets and taxes. 

• On the federal budget and taxes, CBPP President Sharon Parrott released a statement noting that the Senate Republican leaders’ plan doubles down on the House’s disastrous path: higher costs for families, millions more uninsured people, and children without enough to eat. Our by-the-numbers analysis of its tax agenda found that it favors the wealthy and leaves millions of working families behind. Chuck Marr highlighted that the proposal keeps most of the House bill’s flawed provisions and fails to meaningfully help the hard-pressed working families often featured in Republicans’ rhetoric Samantha Jacoby noted that the plan would balloon deficits and debt while delivering $1.1 trillion in tax cuts to people making over $500,000. Kris Cox critiqued the proposal’s failure to improve the Child Tax Credit for the 17 million children currently left out of the full credit because their families earn too little. Cox also zeroed in on the plan’s burdensome and unfair process requiring claimants to “precertify” for the Earned Income Tax Credit. Kris Cox critiqued the proposal’s failure to improve the Child Tax Credit for the 17 million children currently left out of the full credit because their families earn too little. Cox also zeroed in on the plan’s burdensome and unfair process requiring claimants to “precertify” for the Earned Income Tax Credit.  

• On health, our by-the-numbers analysis focused on how the plan’s health agenda would take coverage away from millions of people and raise families’ costs. Sarah Lueck highlighted how the plan fails to remedy the harms of the House bill — which would cause 16 million people to become uninsured — and how it would cause people with disabilities, older adults, and children to lose access to careJennifer Sullivan, Jennifer Wagner, and Allison Orris, respectively, detailed how the plan would increase and impose significant red tape, such as the work requirement projected to cut 5.2 million adults from Medicaid. Elizabeth Zhang and Gideon Lukens analyzed how the plan expands the House bill’s already harsh work requirements to include some parents, and provided estimates of people who would lose coverage. Lukens, Zhang, and Shelby Gonzales explained how the Senate Republican leadership’s bill would cut Medicaid funding to penalize states that provide solely state-funded health coverage to certain immigrants and impose significant red tape, such as the work requirement projected to cut 5.2 million adults from Medicaid. Elizabeth Zhang and Gideon Lukens analyzed how the plan expands the House bill’s already harsh work requirements to include some parents, and provided estimates of people who would lose coverage. Lukens, Zhang, and Shelby Gonzales explained how the Senate Republican leadership’s bill would cut Medicaid funding to penalize states that provide solely state-funded health coverage to certain immigrants. 

• On food assistance, our by-the-numbers analysis focused on how the Senate proposal would reportedly cut the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) by about 20 percent, taking food away from millions of people. 

• On immigration, Shelby Gonzales identified how the Senate proposal departs from our nation’s bipartisan commitment to those fleeing violence and persecution, instead choosing to deny them coverage under Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program, as well as other assistance.  

• On climate, Mikaela Tajo highlighted how the bill would end or accelerate the phaseout of clean energy tax credits and implement new restrictions. 

• On state budgets and taxes, Wesley Tharpe identified how the bill would burden states and localities with new costs — with most states having to pay 5 to 15 percent of SNAP costs in 2028 for the first time — placing at risk public services like education, veterans’ services, and much more.  

Apart from reconciliation, we also focused on Social Security and state budgets and taxes. 

• On Social Security, Kathleen Romig and Gbenga Ajilore noted that its trust funds would be on stronger footing if not for President Trump’s economic and immigration policies.  

• On state budget and taxes, Anna Phillips broke down how Nebraska’s budget shortfall arose in large part from lawmakers using temporary federal aid to justify permanent tax cuts.