| Snapshot (A 30-second read for busy people) By March 14, Congress must either pass a final FY 2025 spending package or another continuing resolution (CR) to avoid a government shutdown. The last action Congress took on their appropriations bills was last summer, when the House bill proposed major cuts to critical OAA programs and modest increases to others, while the Senate bill rejected any cuts and proposed level funding for virtually all OAA programs. Take Action Now: To prevent any funding cuts to OAA programs, please send a letter to your lawmakers in both chambers. Visit our FY 2025 appropriations campaign page to access a customizable template letter to get started! |
| The big news in Washington, DC, last week was the House’s passage of an FY 2026 budget resolution on Tuesday. The resolution includes extended tax cuts and massive cuts to Medicaid, SNAP and other federal programs that millions of older adults and caregivers rely upon. Thanks to all who responded to our February 20 Advocacy Alert! More advocacy will be needed as Republican leaders in Congress advance the details of their plan through multiple committees in the coming weeks and months. But all eyes are now on the March 14 deadline to finalize FY 2025 spending, which is currently at FY 2024 levels under the current CR. Congress needs to pass a full FY 2025 funding package or another CR by the deadline or risk a government shutdown. |
| Reminder On How We Got Here: FY 2025 Timeline to Date |
| 1. June 27, 2024: House Appropriations Labor-HHS Subcommittee increases OAA Title III B Supportive Services and Title VI Native American Aging Programs but proposes major cuts to OAA Title III C nutrition programs and eliminates funding for the OAA Title V Senior Community Service Employment Program and Adult Protective Services. 2. August 1, 2024: Senate Appropriations Committee approved their version of the Labor-HHS bill, which level funded OAA at FY 2024 levels. 3. December 21, 2024: Congress passed, and President Biden signed into law, a second CR funding the government until March 14. The CR also included an extension of MIPPA funding through the end of March. |
| Current Situation |
| While Senate and House appropriators have been negotiating a deal, reports suggest they are at an impasse and a final bill may not be easy to produce by March 14. Complicating the situation are two other dynamics: 1. The FY 2026 budget resolution’s proposed cuts to Medicaid, SNAP and other programs, which Democrats oppose. Politics around that entirely different measure are likely to spill into the FY 2025 funding debate. 2. The Trump Administration’s past and current attempts to freeze federal funding and otherwise override congressional authority to appropriate federal funding. Democrats are seeking Republican colleagues’ assurances that any CR or FY 2025 spending bill would include language to restrict the Administration in some way from interfering with this new tranche of funding. 3. While a lot may change in the next two weeks,the conflicts are serious enough that one cannot rule out a shutdown. That’s why it is very important for Aging Network advocates to keep weighing in on the importance of Older Americans Act and other federal funding sources you rely upon to serve your clients! We need advocates to act NOW to prevent any cuts to OAA or other aging programs, and to extend funding for MIPPA Medicare Low-Income Outreach and Enrollment programs! |
| Take Action Now |
| Contact your lawmakers today to advocate for the highest possible level of funding for OAA programs and services, and to extend funding for MIPPA Medicare Low-Income Outreach and Enrollment programs. Use our newly updated templates to customize your asks to reflect your agency/program: AAA template, Title VI template. Give your Members of Congress a sense of how their communities are affected—take the time to localize what this funding means for the older adults and caregivers in your community, tribe or state. Check out FY 2025 appropriations campaign page for additional resources. STEP 1: Put your requests in writing! Use our customizable templates (AAA/Title VI) to send a letter to your lawmakers! We encourage you to use your agency’s letterhead, but if that is not feasible, send it from your Advisory Board or even yourself as a private citizen. Or do all three! You can find the contact information on your Members’ websites: house.gov and senate.gov. STEP 2: Make your support for OAA funding public. Find out if any of your agency’s stakeholders know the Members of Congress serving your community or if they will be seeing them at any virtual or in-person events. If so, ask that they put in a good word for OAA funding and its impact in your community. STEP 3: Engage your provider network. Urge your vendors/providers, advisory board members and other important stakeholders to send their own letters to Congress. Please do all you can to amplify the message and engage others who understand the value of OAA in their communities! Forward this Alert to your networks or edit it to be best received by your agency’s advocates. Stay tuned for more updates from USAging, and check out USAging’s FY 2025 appropriations campaign page for additional grassroots resources. As always, we thank you for your advocacy! |
| If you have questions or concerns about this Advocacy Alert or USAging’s policy positions, please contact the USAging Policy Team, Amy Gotwals, Olivia Umoren and Seth Ickes at policy@usaging.org. |