“Disability organizations across the country are waiting to receive federal funding that Congress approved in March while also bracing for the possibility of more cuts.” (Image by Thinkstock)
by Michelle Diament and DisalibityScoop
President Donald Trump wants to cut $163 billion in federal spending next year, potentially zeroing out key disability programs, some of which are already pausing services because they’re running out of money.
The White House unveiled a budget summary late last week known as a “skinny budget” that calls on Congress to slash funding for non-defense discretionary spending by 22.6% for the fiscal year starting in October. This would affect programs that Congress reauthorizes annually, but does not include mandatory programs like Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security.
The summary offers little detail about how many disability programs would be impacted. However, a widely circulated budget document leaked last month from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services offers clues. That document shows that the Trump administration wants to eliminate funding for protection and advocacy agencies, state councils on developmental disabilities, the lifespan respite program and university centers on developmental disabilities, among other programs, advocates say.
Read on at DisbabilityScoop…
“Level funding IDEA in particular — as proposed by the White House — is actually a cut,” said Denise S. Marshall, CEO of the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates, or COPAA, a nonprofit that advocates for the rights of students with disabilities and their families. That’s because funding has been static since 2023 even as the number of students with disabilities has grown, she said.
