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Federal Focus: Recent News and Opportunities for Action

September 5, 2025

September 5, 2025

Recent news and opportunities for action that impact children in Massachusetts and around the country. Visit our Federal Advocacy page for more information about key issues that CLM regularly tracks.

Take Action

Organizational Sign-On: Urge Congress to Cosponsor Upcoming Bill Repealing Recent SNAP Cuts (Food Research and Action Center and Center on Budget and Policy Priorities) - DEADLINE 9/17

Recent updates

In June, the Trump Administration requested states share information from their Medicaid and SNAP databases to help identify potential targets for DHS immigration enforcement.

On July 4, President Trump signed into law H.R. 1, the budget reconciliation bill. This bill extends tax cuts that were priorities for the President, while making cuts to many programs including social service safety net programs like Medicaid and SNAP. The full impact of the bill on Massachusetts will take time to develop, as some provisions have delayed or multiyear implementation timelines.

In July, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services published a notice reinterpreting the definition of a “Federal public benefit” under the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) (National Law Review). This rule would block many HHS-funded programs from serving people with temporary immigration status (and would therefore require collection of this information, which not all programs do). A judge delayed implementation of the rule until early September.

On July 22, the Senate Finance Committee held a hearing on the nomination of Dr. Alex Adams as Assistant Secretary for Family Support at the Department of Health and Human Services.

In July The U.S. Department of Justice sent subpoenas to multiple doctors and clinics that provide gender-affirming care for young transgender patients.

On July 17, the National Immigration Project and partners filed a lawsuit challenging USCIS's termination of the Special Immigration Juvenile Status Deferred Action Policy.

On July 31, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi released a memo meant to clarify the Administration's position restricting use of federal funds to support DEI initiatives. (The Hill) The memo specifically restricts use of "cultural competency" and "lived experience" as proxy for standard protected characteristics.

At the end of August a federal judge blocked efforts by the Trump Administration to deport a group of unaccompanied migrant children to Guatemala.

In August, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced an "English-only" policy, eliminating most of its multilingual services and communications. This policy follows a March 2025 executive order designating English as the official language of the United States. (Language Network)


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