United States Senate
Washington, DC 20510
Dear Senator:
On behalf of our 3 million members and the 50 million students they serve, we urge you to VOTE NO on S. Con. Res. 7, the Concurrent Resolution on the Budget for Fiscal Year 2025—the first step toward more tax cuts for billionaires, paid for by everyone else. Votes associated with this issue may be included in NEA’s report card for the 119th Congress.
The budget resolution before the Senate this week will lead to a first round of cuts to student loans, Medicaid, and food assistance to pay for the administration’s deportation machinery that is just the opening move for what will follow: more irresponsible budget-busting tax breaks for billionaires, paid for by students, workers, and families. Meanwhile, the rising costs of what real people struggle with each day—education, healthcare, childcare, housing, meals, and so much more—continue to be ignored.
Instead of investing in any of those areas, the budget resolution will fund the administration’s plan to conduct immigration raids in schools, churches, and hospitals. It will pay for the deportation of Dreamers, farmworkers, childcare providers, and other essential workers—actions that will rip apart families, cripple crucial industries, devastate local economies, and increase the cost of daily life for real people even more.
Additionally, many of the cuts expected in the weeks and months ahead threaten the public schools that educate 9 out of 10 students. Over the long term, it is counterproductive to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations by slashing investments in our students—America’s future leaders and workforce.
As you consider countless amendments this week, we urge you to:
- VOTE YES on any amendments that protect public education, school meals, SNAP, healthcare, Medicaid, and Medicare from cuts
- VOTE YES on any amendments that reverse illegal executive orders and rein in actions by unelected billionaires
- VOTE YES on any amendments that make clear Congress holds the power of the purse and dollars appropriated by Congress cannot be withheld
- VOTE NO on any amendments that cut public education, school meals, SNAP, healthcare, Medicaid, or Medicare
- VOTE NO on any amendments that undermine K-12 access for undocumented students or limit opportunities for undocumented students in higher education or the institutions that serve them
- VOTE NO on any amendments that diminish access to postsecondary education or make student loan repayment less affordable, and efforts to privatize student lending
Again, we urge you to oppose S. Con. Res. 7, the FY2025 budget resolution. It is the first step toward more tax giveaways to billionaires and corporations funded on the backs of America’s students, families, and workers.
Sincerely,
Marc Egan
Director of Government Relations
National Education Association
