President Donald Trump‘s fiscal 2026 budget proposal calls for more than $160 billion in cuts to multiple federal programs.
The symbolic skinny budget, released Friday, is a key indicator of the president’s political priorities for the federal government, but it is not expected to be passed in full.
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It also gives direction to the GOP-led House and Senate on which policies to turn into spending legislation. The skinny budget, coming during the president’s first year of his second administration, is not as detailed as a normal budget.
While fiscal hawks might tout the proposed cuts in the White House budget and Democrats are sure to blast it over the deep spending reductions, the budget is essentially aspirational. The decision on how much money each federal agency should receive in appropriations comes down to Congress, so the budget proposal can be seen as a White House messaging vehicle.
In the budget, Trump proposed $557 billion in nondefense discretionary spending, which amounts to a decrease of $163 billion, or a 22.6% cut, in projected spending in fiscal 2025. The cuts will likely affect education, transportation, and public health funding. Yet the administration is also calling for an increase in spending for veterans, Social Security, and law enforcement.
In contrast, the administration proposed a 13% increase, or to $1.01 trillion, in border security and defense spending. The White House also called for a nearly 65% increase for the Department of Homeland Security to help crack down on illegal immigration and secure the southern border.
The big increase at DHS is to “ensure that agencies repelling the invasion of our border have the resources they need to complete their mission,” according to the White House.
The White House asked Congress to cut $15 billion in funding for renewable energy technology from former President Joe Biden’s infrastructure law and $5.7 billion in funding to the Transportation Department for electric vehicle charger grant programs. Both are key policies that Trump railed against as he campaigned for the presidency in 2024.
Another agency that the White House is seeking to cut spending on includes the U.S. Agency for International Development, as the administration eases away from sending millions of dollars to foreign nations.
Given big advances in artificial intelligence, the budget also maintains funding for U.S. AI research and quantum information science at key agencies, according to the administration.
The budget includes funding for space exploration by refocusing NASA funding. White House officials said it is the administration’s goal to beat China in getting humans back on the moon and shuttling the first human to Mars. The budget would allocate $7 billion for lunar exploration and $1 billion for Mars-focused programs.
As the White House seeks to eliminate the Education Department by sending funding back to states, it is also calling for $500 million, or a $60 million increase, in charter school funding, a move that is sure to delight conservative allies.
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“The President’s Skinny Budget reflects funding levels for an agency that is responsibly winding down, shifting some responsibilities to the states, and thoughtfully preparing a plan to delegate other critical functions to more appropriate entities,” Education Secretary Linda McMahon said in a statement. “It supports the president’s vision of expanding school choice and ensuring every American has access to an excellent education.”
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