Our focus states — Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana and Mississippi — are home to some of the highest rates of poverty, hunger, illiteracy, and poor health outcomes in the nation. Federal assistance programs do not always reach everyone in need — especially in the South — but they are a lifeline for the millions who do benefit. These essential safety net federal programs and services also serve as the foundation of economic stability and mobility in a region where the odds remain stacked against too many. They ensure families can see a doctor when sick, keep food on the table, and have a roof over their heads. Low-income families in our region are likely to be hardest hit by the proposed budget cuts because the Deep South states’ budgets rely heavily upon federal funds to pay for critical services and programs. While the Trump administration and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency are already slashing programs and services, the biggest risk to these programs will be the decisions Congress makes during this budget process.
What Is the Federal Budget and Appropriations Process?
Congress determines federal spending levels for all programs for this year and future years through its annual budget and appropriations process. Ordinarily, at the beginning of every calendar year, the president proposes a federal budget for congressional consideration that reflects the policy priorities of that administration; Congress is not obligated to use any of the president’s recommendations when it pursues its constitutional responsibility to develop and pass the federal budget that funds all critical programs — including health care programs like Medicaid and CHIP, nutrition programs like SNAP, housing assistance, and public education.
Congress begins its process by passing a budget resolution that outlines spending, revenue (taxes and fees), debt, and deficit levels, often over the course of 10 years, which is used to dictate the amount of funds each congressional committee can appropriate for specific programs or purposes. Each committee will then write the budget allocations for the agencies and programs they oversee. When there are differences between the Senate and House allocations, the lawmakers from each chamber usually work together to make the bills in both chambers the same to achieve a final budget resolution bill.[1]
Once a budget resolution is agreed to, Congress has can start the budget reconciliation process — a specific and optional legislative tool and procedure that can be used to fast-track passage of amending tax or spending laws. If the budget reconciliation process fails, then the process moves to the 12 House and Senate appropriations subcommittees, which will hold hearings and set funding levels for discretionary spending for the coming year, which is then voted on by the full Congress. There are two types of federal spending: mandatory and discretionary. Mandatory spending is when the law outlines specific funding levels for programs such as Medicaid, SNAP, TANF, Social Security, etc. Discretionary funding is for programs where the funding levels are not set by law but are decided by the annual appropriations process.
The Federal Budget Timeline is a circular graphic that begins in February and ends in December, showing the key steps in the U.S. federal budget process.
- Between February and March, the President submits a budget request to Congress.
- From March to May, the House and Senate release and reconcile a budget resolution, hold hearings, and set funding levels.
- By June 30, there’s a deadline to finalize appropriation bills.
- From June through August, differences are resolved and a final bill is voted on.
- From September to November, agencies submit budget proposals, and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) sets priorities.
- On October 1, a new fiscal year starts, and a continuing resolution may be passed if needed.
- In December, agencies revise and finalize proposals.
At the end of the fiscal year in October, agencies will create budget requests and submit them to the White House Office of Management and Budget, which will then help develop the budget proposal for the president for the next year. If Congress does not pass its appropriations bill by October for the upcoming fiscal year, it will need to pass a continuing resolution, which contains temporary, stopgap funding bills for the current fiscal year that allows the federal government to remain open while Congress negotiates its appropriations bills for that fiscal year.
What Do the 2025 Proposed Cuts Mean for the Social Safety Net Programs?
For fiscal year 2025, the Republican-led Senate proposed a budget resolution that would cut at least $1 billion from each of the committee that oversees Medicaid and TANF, SNAP, and other key public benefits programs. The Republican-led House of Representatives advanced a budget framework that proposed a $4.5 trillion cut in tax revenue, which is to be offset by a cut of at least $880 billion to the committee that determines Medicaid funding and policy, $230 billion in cuts to the Agriculture committee in charge of SNAP, and $330 billion in cuts to the Education and Workforce committee. The April passed budget resolution obscured the extent of these cut by presenting two different instructions for the Senate and House committees.
Budget cuts of this magnitude would devastate these programs and harm low-income people across the country and lead to the largest cuts to these programs in history. For example:
- Medicaid provides health care coverage for 1 in 5 Americans. A recent CBO report found that the only way to make the proposed $880 billion cuts is with slashes to the Medicaid program.
- SNAP reaches more than 40 million children, seniors, veterans, and working families. $230 billion in cuts would translate to increased poverty and hunger and reduced revenues for retailers and farmers.
- Public schools educate 90% of all children and 95% of children with disabilities. Zeroing out funding for the Department of Education could exacerbate education inequities by jeopardizing funding to low-income schools and eliminating the process to address discrimination in schools.
Demand legislators reject trillions in tax cuts to billionaires and cuts to our social safety net
Trump and Republicans are proposing a federal budget with massive tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy — at our expense. Members of Congress will soon vote on a budget.
How Does This Budget Fight Relate to the Trump Administration’s Gutting the Federal Government?
From day one, the Trump administration has worked to dismantle the federal government by laying off agency staff and slashing funding for services and programs that support everyday people. While some courts are blocking these funding rescissions and staffing reductions as unconstitutionally usurping Congress’ spending power, these protections could be all moot if Congress decides to eviscerate current and future funding to key programs and services. Because a majority of the federal budget is spent on social safety net programs that ensure low-income people have health care, food on the table, and a place to live, these proposed budget cuts will be made on the backs of the poorest Americans — all in an effort to provide trillions of tax breaks to billionaires and corporations.
What Actions Can You Take to Fight These Budget Cuts?
In the coming months, the Senate and House will work on a final budget, which likely will result in hundreds of billions of cuts. The current proposals range from imposing new, harsh work requirements, to reducing benefits, to caps on the number of enrollees and more. You can join us in this fight by learning more about the impact of these proposed budget cuts. Read our recent Cuts and Consequences series featuring impacted individuals: Medicaid, SNAP, Head Start and HUD. Contact your member of Congress and urge them to oppose drastic cuts to these programs.
Image at top: Illustration by the SPLC.
[1] Note that while typically, both House and Senate must agree on a budget resolution blueprint to move forward with the budget reconciliation process, sometimes, as is happening for fiscal year 2025, the Senate and House can move forward with different instructions.