Beltran’s Website Promised To Make The Working Families Tax Cuts Permanent. According to Center Square, “Beltran called for cutting taxes, balancing the federal budget and supporting deportation efforts. ‘Mike strongly supports President Trump's Working Families Tax Cut, delivering no tax on tips, no tax on overtime, and real relief for seniors on Social Security,’ Beltran's website reads. ‘These cuts are putting more money into the pockets of hardworking American families that earned it, and Mike will fight to make them permanent.’ Steele has criticized Beltran for his voting history in the Florida legislature and said he will support the Trump administration's tax cut policies.” [Center Square, 8/16/26]
2025: Trump Worked With Congress Together To Pass The “One Big Beautiful Bill.” According to Fox News, "House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., touted the close coordination between Congress and President Donald Trump to successfully pass the ‘one big, beautiful bill,’ saying the collaboration is part of the ‘beauty of unified government.’ Congress officially passed Trump’s multitrillion-dollar bill Thursday afternoon after back-to-back sleepless sessions for both the House and Senate. The massive agenda package now goes to Trump’s desk to be signed into law just in time for Republicans’ self-imposed Fourth of July deadline." [Fox News, 7/3/25]
HEADLINE: "Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ Cuts Food Stamps For Millions — The Average Family May Lose $146 Per Month, Report Finds" [CNBC, 7/10/25]
May 2025: Speaker Johnson Reached Agreements With Conservative And Moderate Republicans With Help From Donald Trump Before Passing The Sweeping Budget Bill. According to the Guardian, "The biggest obstacle the bill faces is disputes among Republicans themselves. In the days leading up to the vote, Johnson had to reach agreements with lawmakers representing Democratic-led states who demanded a bigger deduction for state and local taxes (Salt). He also had to woo moderates wary of cutting too deeply into safety net programs and rightwing lawmakers demanding more cost savings. The speaker appears to have bridged those divides, aided by a visit to the Capitol from Trump on Tuesday. Moderates backed down after some cuts were nixed, while lawmakers who held out over Salt won an enlarged tax break. Johnson also managed to corral most fiscal conservatives, but acknowledged: ‘There was a few moments over the last week when it looked like the thing might fall apart.’" [Guardian, 5/22/25]
The House Republican Reconciliation Bill Included Nearly $300 Billion In Cuts To The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, "The House-passed Republican reconciliation plan would cut nearly $300 billion from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) through 2034, based on Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimates — by far the largest cut to SNAP in history.[1] As a result of these cuts and other policies in the legislation — which are being used to pay partly for trillions in tax cuts skewed to the wealthy — millions of people would lose some or all of the food assistance they need to afford groceries, when many low-income households are struggling to afford the high cost of food and other basic needs." [Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 5/28/25]
Speaker Johnson “Fought On All Fronts” To Advance The Budget Bill That Passed “With A Push From President Donald Trump.” According to the Associated Press, "With a push from President Donald Trump, House Republicans sent a GOP budget blueprint to passage Tuesday, a step toward delivering his ‘big, beautiful bill’ with $4.5 trillion in tax breaks and $2 trillion in spending cuts despite a wall of opposition from Democrats and discomfort among Republicans. House Speaker Mike Johnson had almost no votes to spare in his bare-bones GOP majority and fought on all fronts — against Democrats, uneasy rank-and-file Republicans and skeptical GOP senators — to advance the party’s signature legislative package. Trump made calls to wayward GOP lawmakers and invited Republicans to the White House. The vote was 217-215, with a single Republican and all Democrats opposed, and the outcome was in jeopardy until the gavel." [Associated Press, 2/25/25]
Four Million People, Many Of Whom Were Children, Were Estimated To Have Lost Critical Food Assistance Following The Passage Of The One Big Beautiful Bill Act. According to NPR, “The largest food assistance program in the U.S. is undergoing a massive overhaul. But even before the most drastic changes take effect, more than 4 million people are estimated to have already lost the critical food aid between last July and April — many of whom are children. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as SNAP or food stamps, has seen a rapid and consistent decline in participation since last July, the same month that a sweeping Republican tax and spending package became law. The One Big Beautiful Bill Act included major changes to the food assistance program.” [NPR, 8/3/26]
The Number Of Florida Residents Who Received Federal Food Assistance Dropped 23 Percent Since 2025. According to Miami Times, “The number of Florida residents who receive federal food assistance dropped by 23% during the past year, state data published this month show. There were 2,285,099 residents enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) in June, down from the 2,970,283 in June 2025, data maintained by the Department of Children and Families show. That’s about a 23% reduction. SNAP enrollment dropped steadily in each of the past 12 months.” [Miami Times, 7/28/26]
After SNAP Cuts In The One Big Beautiful Bill, Florida Was On Track To Have To Pay Upwards Of $1 Billion To Maintain Food Benefits At Their Existing Levels. According to Miami Times, “The number of enrollees in SNAP was dipping before the July 2025 enactment of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act but increased as the law took effect. The law slashes spending on the food security program by $187 billion over a decade. To accomplish those costs savings, Congress required states with SNAP payment error rates of more than 6% to contribute toward the costs of the food beginning next year. Under the law, states with error rates of 10% or more would have to contribute 15% toward food costs, which puts Florida on track to have to pay upward of $1 billion to maintain food benefits at existing levels.” [Miami Times, 7/28/26]
HEADLINE: "SNAP Cuts Impact Nearly 300,000 Floridians. It's Not Over." [Naples Daily News, 4/30/26]
Students In School Districts In Tampa Bay Were Facing Higher Prices For School Meals As Districts Did Away With Universal Free Lunches Through The Federal Community Eligibility Program (CEP). According to Axios, “Students across the state went back to school this week, and many —including some in Tampa Bay — are facing higher prices for school meals. Why it matters: Families across the state are already facing an affordability crisis and higher-priced school meals can add to the strain. The changes also come as more districts statewide are doing away with universal free lunches through the federal Community Eligibility Program (CEP), a move policy experts say will have a harmful effect. […] In Hillsborough, where universal CEP ended a few years ago, 198 schools still meet the federal threshold, meaning students there will get free meals. In Pinellas, it's about 120 schools. Pasco County Schools increased its prices, with elementary breakfast, for example, increasing to $2.05 from $1.95. About 40 schools remain eligible. Manatee County, which offers free breakfast, is raising lunch prices 15-25 cents, per ABC 7, while Sarasota is hiking breakfast prices 25 cents and lunch 40 cents to start the year.” [Axios, 8/13/26]
The Federal Community Eligibility Program (CEP) Allowed Districts To Get Reimbursed If 62.5 Percent Of Students Were Enrolled In Federal Programs Such As SNAP. According to Axios, “The CEP is a federal meal program that allows school districts with high-poverty schools to provide free breakfast and lunch to all students. Districts get reimbursed if 62.5% of students are ‘direct certified,’ meaning they're also enrolled in other federal programs, such as SNAP, and are eligible to receive meals without having to apply.” [Axios, 8/13/26]
School Districts Were Starting To See A Drop In Students Involved In SNAP Funding, Which Limits A School’s Ability To Rely On CEP. According to Axios, “During the 2025-26 school year, Florida had the largest decrease in the total number of schools participating in CEP, with almost a 10% decrease, according to a FRAC study. The majority of that drop (82.7%) came from three school districts: Broward, Duval and Pasco counties. […] School districts across the country are starting to see the share of students participating in programs like SNAP decrease — a ripple effect from the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which cut SNAP funding, said Hysom. As the number of students enrolled in SNAP decreases, so does a school district's ability to rely on CEP.” [Axios, 8/13/26]