U.S. President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” has officially been signed into law — and after weeks of deliberation, the 900-page package is on its way to reality.
There’s a multitude of tax cuts, which are largely expected to benefit America’s wealthiest. Boosts to border and defense spending, with an extra $25 billion for the development of a “golden dome” missile system alone. And slashes to America’s public assistance programs, such as Medicaid, with nearly 12 million expected to lose their health insurance by 2035.
Two of the provisions mostly closely watched by the development sector did not make it into the final bill — including one that would have placed an escalating tax on foundations, and another that would have allowed the Treasury secretary to designate a nonprofit as a terrorist organization. Even so, the bill’s impact will ripple across the sector, with a surge in domestic need expected to further squeeze aid budgets, and a tax on remittances estimated to reduce cash to migrant families by billions of dollars each year.
About the author
Elissa Miolene
Elissa Miolene reports on USAID and the U.S. government at Devex. She previously covered education at The San Jose Mercury News, and has written for outlets like The Wall Street Journal, San Francisco Chronicle, Washingtonian magazine, among others. Before shifting to journalism, Elissa led communications for humanitarian agencies in the United States, East Africa, and South Asia.
