From food stamps to tax cuts: How the federal budget bill could affect Georgians

MEDICAID

The bill directs the Energy and Commerce Committee, which has oversight of Medicaid and Medicare, to reduce spending by $880 billion.

Republicans say they do not plan to cut these programs but will save money by identifying areas of waste, fraud and abuse. However, GOP lawmakers have said there may be changes to how Medicaid dollars are distributed to states, such as capping how much the federal government will pay out per patient each year.

Democrats say this could lead states to limit the number of people on Medicaid, such as rolling back Medicaid expansion, or to implement work requirements for people who want to enroll.

Georgia has not opted to expand Medicaid via the Affordable Care Act, but the state has a limited program to expand Medicaid under the Georgia Pathways to Coverage program.

In Georgia, 1.7 million people are enrolled in Medicaid. That includes five out of seven people living in nursing homes and 40% of children. Nearly half all births in Georgia are covered by Medicaid.

FOOD STAMPS

The bill calls for the Agriculture Committee to cut $230 billion. Democrats say they are worried those reductions could target the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as food stamps.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported that 1.4 million Georgians were food stamps recipients in November 2024. Nearly half of SNAP households in Georgia have children. About one-fifth of recipients are elderly and another fifth are disabled. Able-bodied, childless adults make up 13% of SNAP households, according to the most recent USDA data.

HIGHER EDUCATION

The Education and Workforce Committee is being asked to cut spending by $330 billion. That could impact federal student loan programs and even Pell Grants. The Education Data Initiative reported late last year that Georgia had 228,026 Pell Grant recipients whose average award was $4,974.

NATIONAL DEFENSE

The budget bill calls for increasing spending on national defense through the Armed Services Committee by $100 billion. That could mean new dollars for any one of Georgia’s 12 military bases and installations.

BORDER SECURITY

Homeland Security would receive $90 billion in new money, mainly to boost immigration enforcement efforts. That could bring new dollars to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing facility in Folkston or the Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin.

Increased enforcement could mean that people who entered the U.S. without documentation and settled in Georgia will be more likely to face deportation. An estimated 339,000 undocumented immigrants live in Georgia, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has previously reported. Only six states have larger populations of undocumented residents.

TAX CUTS

The House budget bill includes about $4.5 trillion in tax cuts over 10 years but does not say which taxes should be reduced. The money could be used to extend income tax and estate tax reductions implemented during Trump’s first term in the White House that benefited wealthy Americans most, according to the U.S. Department of Treasury.

The AJC reported in 2019 that there were 211,662 millionaire households in Georgia out of the 3.8 million households overall.

Trump has also proposed eliminating income tax on tips. The vast majority of tipped employees work in restaurants. The Georgia Restaurant Association says more than 500,000 people work in the industry.

DEBT LIMIT

The House bill would allow the debt limit to be increased by $4 trillion, ensuring the nation has the ability to borrow money to pay its bills for roughly two more years.

Without an increase of the debt ceiling, the nation could default on its debts later this year. That could lead to higher interest rates, a stock market crash, a recession and massive job losses that could create a global financial crisis.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.