An Alabama nonprofit is raising concern that possible federal funding cuts could undermine health coverage, nutrition, education and other vital services for residents in the Yellowhammer State.
Congress could soon begin considering budget resolutions that could set the stage for severe cuts to Medicaid, food assistance and other human services. These funding cuts would finance efforts to renew or expand tax cuts for wealthy people and highly profitable corporations, cautions Alabama Arise.
The organization's executive director, Robyn Hyden, issued the following statement, in part, on Monday in response:
“The damage could be severe for hundreds of thousands of people across our state. As many as 1 in 5 Alabamians enrolled in Medicaid could lose their health coverage due to cuts and onerous work reporting requirements. Many more people could see food assistance reduced or eliminated. Other potential targets for cuts include school meals, the Child Tax Credit and tax credits for Affordable Care Act coverage.
“These cuts could cause more economic harm in our state than in most others, because Alabama receives far more federal dollars than we pay in taxes to the federal government. In 2022, Alabamians got a return of $2.01 for every dollar in federal taxes paid per capita. That ranked Alabama as the nation’s seventh-highest beneficiary of federal funds.
“As Alabama Arise and 55 partner organizations wrote last month to Alabama’s congressional delegation, Congress should put the future and well-being of all of us ahead of tax cuts for the wealthy and well-connected. Our lawmakers should reject harmful service cuts for working people and tax giveaways to wealthy households. And they should focus instead on building an economy that works for everyone in Alabama and across our country.”
Read Hyden's full statement here.
Alabama receives a wide array of federal funding to support and maintain public infrastructure, programs and services.
This funding is administered at the state, regional and local levels. Alabama benefited from more than $14.5 billion in federal funds in fiscal year (FY) 2024.
Here are a few key examples, according to Alabama Arise:
- $8.1 billion for health and human services, including Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program (known as ALL Kids in Alabama), Head Start, child care subsidies, child welfare and child protective services, HIV/AIDS prevention, opioid and substance use disorder treatment programs, and supportive services for older adults and people with disabilities.
- $2.86 billion for nutrition and agriculture programs, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), school meal programs, emergency food assistance, cooperative extension services and agricultural research.
- $1.4 billion for transportation, including funds for highways, railways, airports and bridges.
- $1.35 billion for education, including Title I programs, Pell Grants, special education programs and 21st Century Community Learning Centers.
- $318 million for housing and urban development programs, including homeownership programs, Community Development Block Grants and assistance for people facing homelessness.
- $142.1 million for environmental protection, including grants to support clean water, clean air, pesticide management and enforcement of hazardous waste disposal.
- $110 million for fish and wildlife programs and other programs supported by the Department of the Interior.
- $92.4 million for the Tennessee Valley Authority.
- $82 million for workforce development programs, including jobs programs for veterans, unemployment insurance and Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) programs.
- $23.8 million for Department of Justice programs, including sexual assault investigations, supports for crime victims and programs to prevent violence against women.
- $12.6 million for homeland security.
- $4.7 million for energy assistance and weatherization programs.
- $2.1 million from the National Endowment for the Arts.
- $1 million to support election administration.
More resources from Alabama Arise:
—View a full breakdown of federal funds that Alabama received in FY 2024.
—Read the letter from Alabama Arise and 55 partner organizations urging Alabama’s congressional delegation to oppose further tax cuts for wealthy people.
