1. United States
2. N.D.
3. Letter

House Committees have been working on completing their individual portions of the budget reconciliation bill that Republicans are pushing through to enact hefty tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations. To pay for these tax cuts—and take advantage of the filibuster-proof reconciliation procedure—Republicans are including many spending cuts and policy changes from their partisan wish list. In addition to gutting Medicaid, boosting ICE funding and green lighting the sale of public lands for fossil fuel production, these harmful provisions include: $351 billion in cuts to student aid. This includes new limits on Pell Grant eligibility, new caps on how much a student can borrow, roll backs of protections from predatory lenders, and a repeal of President Biden’s student debt forgiveness program. $50 billion in cuts to the Federal Employee Retirement System, including significant reductions in take-home pay, retirement benefits, and protections against unjust treatment for federal workers. Slashes to funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) by nearly 70% and a complete dissolution of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, the government’s top watchdog of public company audits. A widespread roll back of climate-focused programs and clean energy tax incentives authorized by the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act, including the elimination of EV tax credits, the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund, and countless other grants that have led to $630 billion in new business investments and jobs. A $300 billion funding cut and stringent new work requirements for SNAP, the food assistance program that helps over 42 million low-income people nationwide. Language pulled from the REINS Act, a long-time Republican goal, that would give Congress new control over federal rule making. This would make it easier for Republicans to roll back any regulation they don’t like, including those that have already been finalized and implemented. A limit to federal judges’ authority to hold government officials in contempt of court. A move clearly designed to defend the Trump administration from accountability for defying the courts. I urge you to oppose these harmful provisions in the budget reconciliation.  Protect your constituents.