U.S. Senate Passes Budget Framework that Will Harm Virginia Families

Early this morning, the U.S. Senate passed a budget resolution that paves the way for massive cuts to crucial programs that will affect thousands of people across Virginia, including Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), in order to pay for tax giveaways to the ultra-wealthy. The Senate resolution was passed using a budget trick that hides the real price of the tax giveaways, leaving millions in the dark about how much will be cut from critical programs.

“Thank you to Senators Mark Warner and Tim Kaine for rejecting this disastrous budget plan that would slash key programs for Virginia families in order to pay for massive tax breaks for the ultra-wealthy and corporations,” said President and CEO of The Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis Ashley C. Kenneth. “By cutting Medicaid and SNAP, this budget blueprint would jeopardize health care and food access for hundreds of thousands of people in Virginia. And it could create a massive hole in Virginia’s state budget with the loss of federal matching funds. As this bill moves next to the U.S. House of Representatives, we encourage all members of Virginia’s congressional delegation to continue to fight against these draconian cuts and put Virginia families ahead of tax cuts for ultra-wealthy Americans.”

The Senate’s budget resolution follows a version the U.S. House of Representatives passed in February that created a blueprint for massive cuts to critical programs, including Medicaid and SNAP, while providing substantial tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans. Now, the Senate-passed resolution moves back to the U.S. House of Representatives for action, which would kick-start the budget process.

The House budget resolution calls for $880 billion in cuts over the next 10 years to programs under the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s jurisdiction, the vast majority of which would likely come from Medicaid. This would mean massive cuts for the nearly 2 million Virginians who receive health care from Medicaid, including 35% of people who have just given birth and their newborns. Even a 1% reduction in federal funding for Medicaid expansion would lead to the automatic disenrollment of approximately 630,000 Virginians. 

The House budget resolution also calls for $230 billion in cuts to programs under the House Agriculture Committee’s purview, which would likely mean major cuts to SNAP.  Some Congressional leaders are calling for states to pay a portion of SNAP food benefits for the first time.  Paying just 10% could blow an approximately $352 million hole in Virginia’s biennial budget or force massive cuts to SNAP programs that would put 827,800 Virginians at risk of going hungry. 

These cuts are being proposed in order to pay for President Trump’s tax plan, which would disproportionately benefit the ultra-wealthy. The latest analysis on Trump’s tax plan shows that the richest 1%, people with incomes over $914,900, would see an average tax cut of $36,320 while households in the lowest 20% of incomes, people making below $28,600, would see an average tax increase of $790.