NPR

Trump Wants To Limit Aid For Low-Income Americans. A Look At His Proposals

Low-income Americans who take advantage of government safety net programs could be affected by a number of proposed rules and actions in areas such as housing, food aid, overtime and immigration.
Harlem residents choose free groceries at the Food Bank For New York City in 2013. A number of new rules and actions proposed by the Trump administration could affect poor or low-income people who take advantage of government safety net programs.

If you're poor or low-income in the U.S. and take advantage of government safety net programs, you could be affected by a number of new rules and actions proposed by the Trump administration. Most of the changes are still pending, and anti-poverty groups are trying to stop them from going into effect. Some of the proposals already face legal challenges.

President Trump has said repeatedly that he wants to get more people off government aid and into the workforce so they can become self-sufficient. To help do that, he issued an executive order last year to reduce poverty "by promoting opportunity and economic mobility."

In it, Trump called on federal agencies to streamline existing welfare programs, strengthen work requirements and make sure that taxpayer money is spent on "those who are truly in need."

But anti-poverty advocates say the administration's proposals would hurt, rather than help, poor Americans. They say it will make it more difficult for those trying to become self-sufficient by denying them food, housing

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from NPR

NPR2 min read
Tiny Desk Contest Fan Favorite: nobigdyl.
Last week, we asked fans what their favorite entry from this year's Tiny Desk Contest was — and 10,000 of you voted. We're excited to share that the winner of our Fan Favorite vote is "Go With The Ghost" by nobigdyl.! The band, which is based in Murf
NPR6 min read
A New Face, And New Chapter, In R&B's Unstoppable Rap Makeover
Dallas singer 4batz rose from obscurity to a breathlessly awaited debut in barely a year — but his arrival is part of a tense exchange between hip-hop and R&B more than a decade in the making.
NPR3 min read
FTX Says It Will Return Money To Most Of Its Customers
FTX says that nearly all of its customers will receive the money back that they are owed, two years after the cryptocurrency exchange imploded, and some will get more than that.

Related Books & Audiobooks