10/07 • ONE BIG BEAUTIFUL BILL

The United States has passed a sweeping new bill that overhauls taxes, immigration enforcement, and federal spending and introduces significant changes to healthcare access, food support, and climate preparedness.

Nicknamed the “One Big Beautiful Bill” by supporters, the legislation delivers major tax breaks for corporations and high-income earners, while reducing funding for social safety nets. Medicaid and SNAP food assistance (programmes relied on by millions of low-income households) face deep spending cuts also. The Child Tax Credit is also being rolled back to pre-pandemic levels.

According to analysts, the bill could result in 11–17 million people losing health coverage, including legal immigrants. $185 billion in SNAP reductions may deepen food insecurity across underserved and rural communities. Critics warn that smaller clinics, especially in rural states, may shut down as resources dry up.

These cuts also come as climate-related disasters intensify, especially in the wake of record flooding in Texas. Early modelling of the bill's climate impacts performed by the Rapid Energy Policy Evaluation and Analysis Toolkit suggest that carbon dioxide emissions could "... increase by 8 to 12 percent from levels expected over the next decade, if Democrats’ climate law, the Inflation Reduction Act (H.R. 5376 (117)), remains in place."

Supporters of the bill say it promotes economic growth, streamlines federal spending, and strengthens national security; especially for military programmes and immigration enforcement. But many faith leaders  have expressed concern about its long-term impact on vulnerable families and the valuation of economic gains over basic human needs.

The bill passed Congress largely along party lines, reflecting deep divisions over the role of government in supporting healthcare, food access, and climate resilience.