At a time when children and families across the United States are facing rising costs and increasing economic strain, federal investment in children is moving in the wrong direction. For the fourth consecutive year, the share of federal spending dedicated to children has declined. In fiscal year 2025, just 8.57 percent of federal spending was directed toward children—amounting to only $8.57 out of every $100 spent. Even more concerning, investment in the earliest years of life remains strikingly low, with only 1.59 percent of federal resources going to babies and toddlers. 

Unfortunately, Republican leaders in Congress have made no effort to reverse this trend. In fact, they slashed over $1 trillion from Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in order to provide another round of enormous tax breaks to billionaires in H.R. 1 last summer. These massive cuts will have significant implications for children and their families, making it harder to get the care they need and put food on the table.

Now, Republicans in the House and Senate are seriously considering a second budget reconciliation bill. Though hundreds of billions more dollars dedicated to ICE and war with Iran will do nothing to help make everyday necessities like child care or groceries more affordable for American families, Congress appears dead set on plowing ahead with that agenda anyway. Another component of this sweeping package, according to the House Budget Committee Chairman, could be legislation they say will address what they willfully misrepresent as “fraud.” 

This is a narrative Republicans are using to justify even further cuts to programs like Medicaid and SNAP – which are critically important for children and popular with the American people. Nearly half of the nation’s children rely on the affordable, reliable, high-quality coverage that Medicaid provides and 16 million children rely on SNAP for a healthy diet. The true scandal, however, is the federal government’s failure to address child well-being and ensure all children and their families have access to the services they need, deserve, and for which they are eligible under federal and state law. 

Nevertheless, when Congress returns from recess later this month, it appears the House and Senate will take the first procedural step in moving forward with this legislation: passing a budget resolution. That unlocks the process they will later use to pass the bill to provide hundreds of billions more in funding for the Pentagon and ICE – alongside more cuts to health care and even deeper cuts to SNAP that will permanently put benefits even more at risk for children and families, but, for example, will pay for just one hour of the Iran war.

TAKE ACTION

Fortunately, it is not too late to try to stop this latest plan. Not all Republicans in the House and Senate are on board with this yet, so now is the perfect time to make your voice heard and tell your Members of Congress that you do not want them to move forward with a budget resolution that makes additional cuts to benefit programs to pay for increased defense and ICE funding. Tell Congress that enough is enough: no more cuts to programs that kids depend on like Medicaid and SNAP.

  • Please write an email to your Representative and Senators this month.
  • Please call on them to oppose a budget resolution that makes additional cuts to benefits for children to pay for increased defense and ICE funding.
  • Urge them to instead oppose any more cuts to programs that kids depend on like Medicaid and SNAP.
  • Pull from the information above to make your case.

SAMPLE LETTER

Dear [Senator/Representative Last Name], 

I am writing to urge you to oppose any forthcoming budget resolution in Congress that tees up any additional cuts to programs like Medicaid or SNAP to pay for increased funding for the war in Iran or ICE. 

At a time when children and families across the United States are facing rising costs and increasing economic strain, federal investment in children is moving in the wrong direction. For the fourth consecutive year, the share of federal spending dedicated to children has declined. In fiscal year 2025, just 8.57 percent of federal spending was directed toward children—amounting to only $8.57 out of every $100 spent. Even more concerning, investment in the earliest years of life remains strikingly low, with only 1.59 percent of federal resources going to babies and toddlers and the cuts to Medicaid and SNAP disproportionately impact babies because these programs account for more than 47% of all the federal support they receive . 

Cuts to children’s supports will not solve the nation’s fiscal challenges. Cutting investments in children may reduce spending on paper, but the savings are minimal and are overwhelmingly outweighed by the long-term economic and social costs to them, their families, communities, and the nation. Research consistently shows that investments in children strengthen long-term economic growth, workforce participation, and national competitiveness. Reducing investments in children is neither a meaningful deficit solution nor a responsible economic strategy.  

States also are grappling to absorb the enormous, historic cuts to Medicaid and SNAP from H.R. 1, which are only beginning to take effect now. Our nation’s children and their families cannot afford another round of cuts to the programs they rely on to get the care they need or put food on the table. 

As your constituent, I am asking you to protect Medicaid and SNAP for kids and oppose a budget resolution that tees up cuts to these critical programs. Anything but opposition to such a budget resolution is a betrayal of our nation’s children. 

Sincerely, 

[Your name]