AFSCME GO Roundup | May 16, 2025
GO Budget Update
- SUMMARY - Budget fight continues:
- This week in the House, the Energy and Commerce Committee voted to make deep cuts to Medicaid and impose onerous work requirements on applicants. The Agriculture Committee made additional cuts to SNAP, and the Ways & Means Committee solidified plans to use these cuts to fund massive tax breaks for billionaires.
- Next, the various committee-approved bills will be combined into one large bill, which still needs to be approved by the full House. If it is passed by the House, it will then go to the Senate for a vote.
- Time for Action: Our pressure campaign is working. There are still divisions in the House about the scale of cuts. Early next week will be a pressure point when House leadership tries to bring the package to the floor for a vote. Additionally, senators from both parties are already expressing concerns about the impact the House-proposed cuts would have on their states. Some Republicans say they are especially concerned about the deep cuts to Medicaid to pay for massive tax cuts for billionaires, and several Republican senators have gone public about their opposition to forcing states to pick up the tab for funding SNAP.
- Call Congress: No cuts to Medicaid to pay for tax cuts for billionaires. As lawmakers head into the next step of the legislative process, we will continue directing calls to members of Congress and holding events in their districts.
- We have created a toolkit to support efforts to fight back on the budget attacks. Contact [email protected] for more resources on types of events to hold, messaging, social media graphics, content suggestions, and more.
- Call your member of Congress’ office directly at: 202-559-1165 or through https://act.afscme.org/forms/call-congress-no-budget-cuts/
- Contact [email protected] if you are interested in planning an event.
- TIMELINE AND KEY DATES - The timeline for the budget may change.
- Week of May 19: The House Budget Committee will quickly combine the various committee bills into a final reconciliation bill and then send it to the House Rules Committee. If it advances out of the Rules Committee, it will go to the House floor for a vote. The House speaker says he hopes to hold that vote on the floor as soon as next Wednesday, May 21, before the Memorial Day recess.
- May 26-May 30: The House and the Senate take the Memorial Day recess. Members will be back home in their districts.
- June: Senate action on the House-passed bill is expected after House passage. Remember, both the House and Senate must pass the bill in identical form before it can be signed into law by the president. Any Senate changes must go back to the House for approval. The House and Senate hope to complete action on a final bill before July 4.
- June 30-July 4: July 4 recess. Members will be back home in their districts.
Wins This Week
- Keeping powers separated: In our joint lawsuit challenging the administration’s reorganization of the federal government, a federal judge temporarily blocked the White House from continuing to bypass Congress to institute massive reductions in force across key agencies. This case represents the largest and most significant challenge to the White House’s authority to remake our government without congressional approval. For now, this billionaire-run administration must adhere to the Constitution and to the separation of powers.
- “Billionaires and anti-union extremists have launched a hostile takeover of government – unlawfully bypassing Congress to shut down and restructure agencies,” AFSCME President Lee Saunders said in a statement. “These actions threaten the public services that AFSCME members provide at every level of government. We are pleased that the court issued a decision today to pause these devastating attacks and bring relief to public service workers and our communities as our case moves forward.”
- “Billionaires and anti-union extremists have launched a hostile takeover of government – unlawfully bypassing Congress to shut down and restructure agencies,” AFSCME President Lee Saunders said in a statement. “These actions threaten the public services that AFSCME members provide at every level of government. We are pleased that the court issued a decision today to pause these devastating attacks and bring relief to public service workers and our communities as our case moves forward.”
GO Latest
- We won’t forget: Jeanne Weaver, a care aide from Pennsylvania who worked with individuals with disabilities and is now president of AFSCME Chapter 13 Retirees, and Stephanie Teachman, CSEA member and president of SUNY Fredonia Local 607 in New York, traveled to the nation’s capital this week to protect Medicaid funding for their communities. Both AFSCME members come from rural communities where local hospitals, clinics and nursing homes could close due to Medicaid funding cuts. And both of their representatives in Congress – Rep. John Joyce (PA-13) and Rep. Nick Langworthy (NY-23) – sit on the Energy and Commerce committee where cuts were being debated. Despite our efforts, both Joyce and Langworthy voted to deprive their own districts of Medicaid funding. Jeanne and Stephanie will hold them accountable at the ballot box. We won’t let them forget this vote.
- AFSCME stories in committee: During the House Energy and Commerce committee markup, Rep. Scott Peters (CA-50) shared the story of UDW/AFSCME Local 3930 member Jesus Acosta, one of his constituents. After his mother got into an accident, Jesus stepped up to become her full-time caregiver. As Peters said, Medicaid helps his family make ends meet and keeps them all under one roof.
- Old school shoe-leather lobbying: Members of Maryland Council 3 came to the Capitol to engage in some classic shoe-leather lobbying. They knocked on doors and visited 82 offices of members of Congress to let them know why these Medicaid and SNAP cuts would be catastrophic, not just for Maryland but for AFSCME members, retirees, and our communities across the country. And to remind them that AFSCME is watching.
- Making noise at home: While Congress debated cuts, AFSCME members across the country continued to rally in their communities to protect vital public services.
- In Arizona’s 6th Congressional District, AFSCME members delivered letters to Rep. Juan Ciscomani urging him not to cut Medicaid. Ciscomani responded by saying he will not vote to cut Medicaid. “It’s going to be tricky, but I think you’re on the right track voting against these cuts,” Maria Velasco, community health adviser at El Rio Health and vice president of AFSCME Local 449, told KGUN News.
- In California’s 40th Congressional District, AFSCME members in health care rallied against Medicaid cuts, calling on their representative, Young Kim, to vote against them. Gloria Orduña, a UDW/AFSCME Local 3930 member, told Univision that the potential effects of Medicaid cuts “will be a crisis in every aspect. This will be an epidemic and a tragedy and a terrible crisis.”
- In Madison, Wisconsin, AFSCME members gathered outside the State Capitol building to urge lawmakers to act as federal funding cuts threaten critical services and public sector jobs. As reported by WKOW news, AFSCME Local 1 Vice President JoAnna Frasch rallied the crowd with a message of unity: “There are more of us than there are of them. We are the many, they are the few, and when we fight, we win.”
GO Legal
- Stopping the kibosh on NIOSH: On Wednesday, a group of unions sued Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the Department of Health and Human Services over their efforts to shut down the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. The plaintiffs include AFSCME Local 983, District Council 37, whose members were among the responders to the 9/11 terrorist attack and who participate in the World Trade Center Health Program, which is threatened by the unlawful dismantling of NIOSH.
- AFSCME assists AGs to enjoin administration: On Tuesday, a group of 21 state attorneys general obtained a preliminary injunction against the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) and the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), which provides funding to many institutions where AFSCME members work, and the Minority Business and Development Agency (MBDA). AFSCME members and staff assisted the attorneys general in obtaining the injunction by providing evidence of the detrimental impact of the administration's actions.
Why We Need to Get Organized
- Federal budget cuts move forward: Anti-worker extremists in the House committees have pushed forward a federal budget that will bring massive cuts to Medicaid, SNAP and public services nationwide – and cause devastation within our communities. The architects of this budget want to gut these lifesaving services to make room for billionaire tax breaks.
- “As costs continue to rise, working people will have even less to spend, hurting small businesses, resulting in layoffs and devastating Main Streets across the country,” said AFSCME President Lee Saunders in a statement. “Clearly, the intention of those voting for this budget package isn’t to put people to work and stimulate our economy; it’s to give the wealthiest among us a handout at the expense of working people.”
- The fight’s not over: Call your member of Congress’ office directly at: 202-559-1165 or through https://act.afscme.org/forms/call-congress-no-budget-cuts/
- Mayors sound the alarm: The United States Conference of Mayors sent a letter to lawmakers in Washington warning that cutting Medicaid will lead to more crime and reduce emergency services. “The cuts being considered by Congress will not only hurt Medicaid beneficiaries and our health system but also jeopardize public safety and the progress we have made in reducing violent crime,” according to the nonpartisan group, whose members lead 1,400 cities.
- Learn more: From this AFSCME blog.
- Hospitals sound the alarm: Major hospital groups join the chorus of voices demanding Congress not move to cut Medicaid. “Congressional Republicans and President Trump rightly pledged to protect Medicaid benefits and coverage – this bill fails that test,” said Chip Kahn, president of the Federation for American Hospitals. “It is imperative Republicans go back to the drawing board; too many lives depend on it.”
- Learn more: On AFSCME’s Facebook page.
- Artificial Intelligence: In their budget proposal, anti-worker extremists in Congress – some of the same politicians who preach “state rights” – have snuck in a provision that would bar states would enforcing new laws or regulations on AI for 10 years. “This ban will allow AI companies to ignore consumer privacy protections, let deepfakes spread, and allow companies to profile and deceive consumers using AI,” Rep. Jan Schakowsky warned.