Arise Citizens’ Policy Project executive director Kimble Forrister issued the following statement Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2018, in response to the release of the White House’s proposed 2019 federal budget:

“The White House’s budget proposal lays out a vision of a dark and troubling future for struggling families across Alabama. This plan would slash services like nutrition assistance, health care and affordable housing, making it even tougher for hard-working Alabamians struggling to make ends meet. Life would become harder for everyday families, even as big corporations and wealthy people would continue to enjoy the huge federal tax cuts that were just enacted.

“This budget plan would cut more than $200 billion over the next decade from SNAP assistance, which helps one in five Alabama families put food on the table. It would cost Alabama more than $140 million in federal funding for affordable housing next year, even as the state faces a shortage of more than 76,000 affordable and available homes for households with extremely low incomes. And it would cut hundreds of billions of dollars by 2028 from Medicaid, which provides health coverage for one in five Alabamians – almost all of whom are children, seniors, pregnant women, or people with disabilities.

“Public policies should make it easier, not harder, for working families to get ahead. This budget is a wake-up call about the legislative goals and values of this administration. It paints a bleak picture for our country’s future, and we can’t afford to allow that vision to become a reality. Alabama’s members of Congress should reject this misguided agenda and instead work to ensure that families have the resources and opportunities they need to reach their full potential.”