2027 Presidential Budget Request Will Make Life Harder

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Ms. RIVAS. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congressman Garcia and assistant Democratic leader Neguse for holding this important conversation on Trump's budget request for 2027.

We are here because Trump and Republicans led us to a cost-of-living crisis that is making life more unaffordable for working families. Trump's budget proposal will make this crisis worse. I have heard from people across my district that life is too expensive, from food to gas to rent.

Budgets are a reflection of our values, and Trump made his values heard loud and clear: Leave working families behind.

Trump's budget cuts $73 billion in programs that support working families. One of the programs that will be facing serious cuts is the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, or LIHEAP. LIHEAP is a key program that helps families with reducing the costs associated with home energy bills, energy crises, weatherization, and minor energy- related home repairs. LIHEAP helps environmental justice communities like mine deal with the effect of extreme heat and climate change, and Trump wants to gut $4 billion in funding for LIHEAP.

Southern California is no stranger to heat, especially in the summer. However, due to climate change, periods of extreme heat in southern California, especially in the San Fernando Valley, are becoming more common, more intense, and more harmful. Eliminating critical funding for LIHEAP means my constituents will be less prepared to deal with periods of extreme heat while also paying more to keep their homes cool. Extreme levels of heat with no support or financial assistance to keep homes cool will be dangerous and even deadly.

Additionally, Trump is proposing a 52 percent cut in EPA funding. EPA has helped environmental justice communities like mine breathe cleaner air and drink cleaner water. By cutting EPA funding by over one-half, Trump will make our communities sicker.

Trump's budget proposal does not make life healthier or more affordable for working families in my district and across the country. In fact, prices will skyrocket. Since Trump's war in Iran started, gas prices in Los Angeles County have shot up to an average of nearly $6 per gallon with some gas stations seeing prices as high as $8 per gallon. Trump's budget request does not bring gas prices down for working families in the San Fernando Valley or across the country.

Trump's budget will also harm pregnant women, mothers, and children. WIC programs across my district help many of my constituents access the resources that they need for a healthier life, including food vouchers, nutrition education, and healthcare referrals. Trump's budget proposal slashes funding for WIC programs and will force millions of Americans to go hungry.

At a time when Americans are struggling to afford to put food on their table, Trump and Republicans are offering no life raft for those who need it the most. Trump wants to continue spending over $1 billion per day to continue his war in Iran while working families in my district and across the country continue to struggle with the rising cost of gas.

As Donald Trump turns his back on working Americans, my Congressional Progressive Caucus colleagues and I are fighting for them and the resources they need to succeed.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source