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Chicago Tribune
3 days ago
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Trump administration cuts impact NWI food organizations
More cuts from President Donald Trump's administration have affected Northwest Indiana, shifting and canceling funds for those who provide food. The Food Bank of Northwest Indiana announced a nationwide funding pause for the Senior Community Service Employment Program, which the organization called an 'unexpected pause' that has disrupted daily operations and impacted team members who work to maintain food access. 'As the food bank becomes more efficient in serving more friends and neighbors in Lake and Porter counties, we are already finding ourselves in challenging situations given some of the constraints with new policy at the federal and state level,' Victor Garcia, president and CEO of the food bank, said in a news release. 'This is not the time to be taking even more resources from sister nonprofits like the food bank and others in the community that benefit from this program that's offered with federal dollars through the American Association of Retired Persons.' The food bank supports about 2,000 seniors each month, according to the news release, providing them with a stable income and keeping them engaged with the community. Funding changes have made everyday operations more demanding for staff. The Northwest Indiana Food Council is among national organizations affected by the termination of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's $400 million Regional Food Business Centers program. A representative for the Northwest Indiana Food Council was unavailable for comment. The program was created by Congress during former President Joe Biden's administration, using one-time, temporary funding. According to the USDA website, the department terminated the program because it 'should not have been established in this manner in the first place.' 'The Biden Administration created multiple, massive programs without any long-term way to finance them. This is not sustainable for farmers who rely on these programs, and it flies in the face of Congressional intent,' said Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins in a release. 'USDA will honor existing communities for over 450 grants to farmers and food businesses to ensure planning decisions on the farm can continue as normal, however stakeholders should not plan on this program continuing. Any remaining funds will be repurposed to better support American agriculture.' Eight Regional Food Business Centers have selected or issued Business Builder grants, according to the USDA, but the Great Lakes Midwest portion has not. The Great Lakes Midwest center is run by the Michigan State University Center for Regional Food Systems, and it provides coordination, technical assistance and capacity-building opportunities through financial assistance for farmers, producers and other food business owners. Jahi Johnson-Chappell, director of Michigan State's Center for Regional Food Systems, said it's 'incredibly disappointing and angering' to see the food business center program terminated, especially because it provides millions of dollars to food programs in Midwestern states, including Illinois and Indiana. 'We really targeted how this could give back to communities, not just making sure that businesses were financially sustainable, but they were contributing to food access, equity, nutrition and diversity in their local food systems,' Johnson-Chappell said. 'These resources are very much needed. … We know small and mid-sized food and farm businesses are the backbone of resilience.' Cutting the program hurts the credibility of the USDA, Johnson-Chappell said, and he worries how farmers and food businesses will continue without the assistance the program provided. Effects from the program cuts are seen immediately, Johnson-Chappell said. Farmers in the Midwest are losing about $2 million almost immediately, he said, because they've had to cut grant applications and programs. Michigan State's Center for Regional Food Systems will look for ways to close gaps and help provide funding to those in the Midwest who need it. 'It's infuriating because we know these programs were effective,' Johnson-Chappell said. 'We know they're needed. … I don't know what (the USDA) will do with the money now.'
CNN
29-07-2025
- Business
- CNN
The Labor Department has suddenly stopped funding a senior job training program
Goodwill, Easterseals and other nonprofit organizations say thousands of low-income seniors could soon be unemployed because funding hasn't come through for a decades-old federal job training and placement program. The Department of Labor has yet to release more than $300 million in funds for national grantees of the Senior Community Service Employment Program, which was created in 1965 to help low-income, out-of-work adults 55 and older — especially veterans, rural residents and people with disabilities — return to the workforce. On July 1, the Department of Labor released about $86 million in funds to state recipients, but the national grantees' funds were not released (something that's typically done in May), several of the longtime participating nonprofit organizations told CNN. The funding pause of the program that serves about 40,000 seniors was first reported by Bloomberg Law. As a result, those organizations say they've had to furlough seniors participating in the program, as well as their own employees. These moves are coming at a time when hiring activity has continued to slow in the broader US labor market. 'This is an intrinsically American program, when you think about it: people who want to work, who want to be contributing members of society, people who want to be able to support themselves, who want to be a part of a community,' Kendra Davenport, president and chief executive officer of Easterseals, which provides services to children and adults with disabilities. But the uncertainty extends beyond the current year's funding, as the program itself is feared to be on borrowed time: The proposed 2026 fiscal year budget for the Labor Department proposes eliminating the SCSEP and a slew of other longtime job training programs and replacing them with a block grant to be distributed to states and local communities. Such potential cuts couldn't be coming at a worse time, Davenport said. 'If you look at a macro level at what is impacting these seniors, there are Medicaid cuts, so their health care might go away,' she said. 'There are massive [Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program] cuts. Many of these folks are dependent on SNAP for food assistance; that's going away. And now SCSEP is taking away their opportunity to work.' She added: 'We're putting people who really do want to help themselves in a terrible position.' A Labor Department spokeswoman said the agency will 'provide an update soon' on the remaining $307 million in 2025 funding for the national grant recipients. 'The Department has given all SCSEP grantees a one-month period of performance extension, so that if grantees have funding available from their Program Year 2024 grant, they can still use these funds to continue program operations,' Christine Feroli, a Labor Department spokeswoman, wrote via email to CNN. 'The Employment and Training Administration is preparing to award grants shortly after state and territorial grantees submit their required budget documents. The department will support grantees in their operations and services to participants.' Organizations such as the National Asian Center on Aging are sounding the alarm over the funding delays. 'This funding delay is not just a bureaucratic issue, it's a crisis for tens of thousands of older adults who depend on SCSEP to survive,' Clayton Fong, president and CEO of the organization that provides employment programs and caregiving services for older adults, said in a statement earlier this month. In an emailed statement to CNN, Fong called on the Labor Department to fully fund the program to support a 'meaningful pathway to economic stability' for low-income seniors. 'SCSEP is a job training program that restores dignity and a sense of purpose to seniors who want to continue working but are often overlooked in the workforce,' Fong said. 'This funding pause has painful consequences for jobseekers who are trying to build skills and take care of themselves and their families.' Fong's organization has furloughed more than 800 senior workers. At Goodwill Industries, more than 400 program participants were placed on leave of absence status; and if funds are not released by July 31, additional furloughs could impact more than 1,500 of its older workers, the nonprofit said in an emailed statement to CNN. 'Goodwill is urging the Department of Labor to quickly provide the allocations needed for this important program to continue and calls upon Congress to continue to invest in SCSEP, providing essential support for older workers,' according to the statement.
The Hill
11-07-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
When the Department of Labor pauses, 20,000 seniors pay the price
This last week was not one of celebration for me, but of heartbreak. While others celebrated the Fourth of July with fireworks and family gatherings, I was forced to furlough more than 800 low-income older adults from a program that offers them purpose, community and the ability to survive. Many of these elders are immigrants — Americans who have spent their lives working, raising families and contributing to our country in every conceivable way. Now, in their later years, they ask for so little: a modest opportunity to stay active, stay connected and make ends meet. At the heart of this crisis is a senseless delay in the release of federal funding for a vital employment training program. Through the Senior Community Service Employment Program, the National Asian Pacific Center on Aging places low-income older adults into part-time community service roles that provide on the job training. These roles — whether in libraries, food banks, senior centers or public schools — offer more than just modest income. They offer connection, routine, dignity and a sense of meaning for people who too often feel discarded by society once they pass a certain age. But when the funding pause hit, everything stopped. Suddenly, our elders — some as old as 79 — were without income. These are individuals who make less than $1,200 a month and continue to work because they simply have no other choice. Social Security isn't enough. Their savings, if they had any, are long gone. Rent, food, medicine — these costs don't pause just because Washington does. When participants asked, 'How long will this furlough last?' I had no answer to give. I couldn't say if it would be days or weeks. All I could say was that we are fighting for them. But all we hear from the decision-makers is the same vague word: 'Soon.' But 'soon' doesn't fill a fridge. 'Soon' doesn't cover the rent. 'Soon' doesn't ease the panic of an 80-year-old who doesn't know how they'll get through the month. This is not just a National Asian Pacific Center on Aging problem. Our 800 elders join nearly 20,000 older workers across the country — many in other minority and rural communities — who were also furloughed on July 1 when the funding failed to arrive on time. This is not about politics or policy differences. It is about a lapse in administration that has real, painful, human consequences. I've spent much of my life advocating for our elders — those whose stories echo the journey of my own parents, who came to this country in search of opportunity and worked tirelessly to build a better future for their families. These seniors are the living embodiment of the American Dream. They endured war, poverty, discrimination and dislocation. They cleaned our hospitals, cared for our children, cooked in our restaurants, and built lives one humble job at a time. Now, they ask for so little — just a chance to contribute and survive. But this week, my heart aches. I feel powerless watching people I care deeply about struggle, not because they failed, but because the system failed them. I pray this delay is resolved in days, not weeks. I pray that next week brings good news, not another hollow 'soon.' If we cannot protect the most vulnerable among us, especially those who have spent their lives protecting and serving others, then we have lost something fundamental about who we are. The Department of Labor should act now to restore the funding, and affirm the simple promise that America takes care of its own — especially the ones who took care of us. Clayton Fong is president and CEO of the National Asian Pacific Center on Aging.
