In response to House Republicans passing Trump’s disastrous budget bill, Arkansas Democratic Party Chair Grant Tennille released the following statement: 

“Last night, House Republicans, including ALL FOUR of Arkansas’s Congressmen, voted to devastate Arkansas families, ripping away food and healthcare from hundreds of thousands of Arkansans- to appease Donald Trump and his billionaire backers. 

Here’s the reality: The GOP’s catastrophic ‘billionaire first’ budget will harm Arkansas’s economy, cost hardworking Arkansans their jobs, and leave working families footing the bill for America’s wealthiest. Once again, it’s clear that Trump and Republicans are only concerned with enriching billionaires on the backs of working Arkansans - but we’re ready to fight back. 

Our GOP Congressional delegation encouraged and advocated for this toxic attack on Arkansans that will rip away quality, affordable health care and take food off of many Arkansans’ tables - all to give tax handouts to the top 1%. 

8% of Arkansans benefit from SNAP. That’s 1 in 13 Arkansans. 813,000 Arkansans benefit from Medicaid. Let’s be clear: Our Congressional delegation voted to leave our neighbors without food and healthcare to benefit the billionaires that paid for their way into Congress.

Make no mistake: Arkansas Democrats will keep fighting for expanded access to healthcare and SNAP benefits in Arkansas. And we will make it a priority to ensure Natural State voters have the knowledge to hold every Republican loyal to billionaires accountable at the ballot box.”

At Donald Trump’s command, House Republicans, including Rep. French Hill, passed Trump’s disastrous “billionaires first” budget to make Trump’s tax scam permanent and fund a billionaire giveaway on the backs of working Arkansans.

215 Republicans voted to pass this bill through the House of Representatives. They succeeded with a one vote margin, 215-214. 

Trump: “It is IMPERATIVE that Republicans in the House pass the Tax Cut Bill, NOW! Our Country Will Boom!!!” 

NBC News: “Senate Republicans released a new budget blueprint Wednesday that would pave the way for … making President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts permanent.”

Axios: “The draft legislation would extend the cuts in the 2017 tax bill, and it adds on some more breaks.

“Some will benefit the wealthiest, including a permanent increase to the deduction for pass-through income to 22% from 20%, plus a hike for the estate tax exemption, which would shield more inheritances from taxes.” 

To afford another round of tax handouts for their billionaire backers, Republicans are sticking low-income Arkansas families with the bill, causing them to have less after-tax income.

USA Today: “Low-income families would lose, wealthier ones would gain under GOP tax proposals” 

“Low-income families stand to lose hundreds if not thousands of dollars in income while wealthy ones will gain even more, according to a new analysis of Congressional Republican tax and budget proposals. … 

“The report estimated that families with a modified adjusted gross income of less than $10,000 would lose over $2,700 (or nearly a 15% reduction in income). Families who make between $10,000 and $20,000 would lose over $800, or about 4.4% reduction in income, while families who make between $20,000 and $30,000 would lose $400, or about 1.5% reduction in income. 

“In comparison, families with higher incomes would benefit from the extension of the 2017 tax cuts.” 

… while gutting Medicaid, a lifeline for 813,000 Arkansans, and slashing food assistance programs that help put meals on the table for over 240,000 Arkansans.  

KFF: “Among all Medicaid enrollees in Arkansas: 

• 3 in 8 (38%) are children 
• 2 in 5 (41%) live in a rural area 
• 1 in 12 (8%) have three or more chronic conditions

CBPP: “In Arkansas, SNAP reaches 

• 240,100 Arkansas residents, or 8% of the state population (1 in 13)
• more than 64% of SNAP participants are in families with children
• more than 45% are in families with members who are older adults or are disabled more than 27% are in working families

The Hill: “Republicans on the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Wednesday afternoon advanced legislation containing cuts to Medicaid and health care provisions - some of the most controversial and contentious provisions that will be included in the ‘big, beautiful bill’ of President Trump’s ambitious legislative agenda.

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: “CBO’s early estimates show that at least 13.7 million people would lose coverage and become uninsured because of the Medicaid cuts and the ACA marketplace restrictions in this committee legislation, as well as the fact that the budget legislation does not extend expiring marketplace premium tax credit improvements.”

West Virginia Watch: “Medicaid cuts could hurt older adults who rely on home care, nursing homes” 

ProPublica: “The Trump Administration Cracked Down on Medicaid. Kids Lost Insurance.”

Georgetown University Center for Children and Families: “Cuts to Medicaid Will Shift Costs to Families, Providers and Will Be Especially Harmful to Rural Communities”

Politico: “House Agriculture Committee approves $300 billion in nutrition spending cuts”

Center for Budget Policies and Priorities: “Millions of Low-Income Households Would Lose Food Aid Under Proposed House Republican SNAP Cuts”

“Regardless of how Republican lawmakers enact a cut of this magnitude, this would slash more than 20 percent from a program that helps more than 40 million people, including 1 in 5 children, afford groceries.”