EDGE is proud to partner with the National Skills Coalition and appreciates their update below, which simplifies the complexity of federal policy changes within the California context.
Federal Priorities
The Trump administration has signaled that federal education and safety net programs are at risk for dramatic reductions. These cuts could severely impact students and workers across California, and would also undermine strong workforce programs, including any expansion of Pell Grants, which has been discussed as a priority by Republicans in both chambers.
A list of programs most at risk of cuts was leaked earlier this year and signaled an intent to make significant cuts to federal programs like Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Medicaid—programs that impact workers’ and students’ ability to advance skills.
In this blog, NSC outlines the key windows for advocacy and actions advocates can take to protect vital workforce funding.
Looming Budget Deadline
On March 14, the current federal funding bill expires. Congress could pass either a short-term Continuing Resolution (CR) or extend funding through the end of the fiscal year (September 30, 2025). In terms of the budget, Republicans have indicated they want to pass their reconciliation[1] package by early spring, but the timeline remains uncertain. For background, reconciliation is a legislative process that allows Congress to pass budget-related bills with a simple majority, bypassing the usual 60-vote threshold in the Senate. The next few months will be critical in determining whether Republicans meet their goal.
California’s Response
[1] Reconciliation is a legislative process that allows Congress to pass budget-related bills with a simple majority, bypassing the usual 60-vote threshold in the Senate. However, the process comes with trade-offs: The Byrd Rule prevents Congress from adding policies that don’t have a direct budgetary impact. If Republicans stay unified, they could pass two reconciliation bills – one tied to the 2025 Budget Resolution and another for 2026.
Following a special legislative session in late 2024, Governor Newsom signed legislation on February 7 allocating $50 million to protect the state’s policies from challenges by the Trump administration and to defend immigrants facing possible deportation. This funding includes $25 million for the state Department of Justice’s legal battles against the federal government and another $25 million to support legal groups defending immigrants.
Days before, Governor Newsom traveled to Washington, D.C. to meet with President Trump as well as Republican and Democratic members of the California Delegation along with members of the U.S. Senate in an effort to secure critical disaster aid for the survivors of the Los Angeles fires. The meeting comes on the heels of Trump’s announcement to tie federal aid to contingencies such as state voter ID requirements and the release of water “down into Los Angeles and throughout the state.”
Though it’s worth noting that fire experts have repeatedly debunked the notion that the state’s water policies played a role in worsening the fires.
Lawsuits Against the Trump Administration
California’s Attorney General, Rob Bonta, has also filed a slew of lawsuits against the Trump administration. As a member of a nationwide coalition of 14 attorneys general, he filed a lawsuit on February 13 that challenges Elon Musk’s exercise of power in his appointed position at the helm of Trump’s newly-created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
Another lawsuit was filed in response to evidence that the Trump administration wasn’t abiding by a court order to halt a freeze of $3 trillion in federal funding by issue of a presidential executive order. A coalition of 23 attorneys general led by AG Bonta successfully sued for a temporary restraining order, preventing federal agencies from freezing local grants and aid–a decision that the Trump administration has already appealed.