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Trump Slashes Useless Agencies

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Yowser! It appears there will be lots and lots of government sand crabs looking for work soon. Take a gander at some of these agencies we have been supporting with our tax dollars; it took someone with some guts to say goodbye to them. NPR and PBS have always been left-wing broadcasting entities anyway. Let the listeners fund them or die. Once again, the “Invisible Hand” will decide.

Trump Budget Eliminates Federal Funding for 19 Agencies

In addition to reducing spending from several large government entities such as the Environmental Protection Agency and the State Department, President Donald Trump’s proposed first budget calls to eliminate federal funding for 19 federal agencies, for a total of $3 billion in cuts.

Some of the agencies, such as the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Endowment for the Arts, are relatively well-known, while others benefit foreign countries and are, in many cases, holdovers from former presidencies.

“Consistent with the President’s approach to move the nation toward fiscal responsibility, the budget eliminates and reduces hundreds of programs and focuses funding to redefine the proper role of the federal government,” a blueprint copy of Trump’s “America First” budget says. 

The agencies to lose their federal funding include: the African Development Foundation; the Appalachian Regional Commission; the Chemical Safety Board; the Corporation for  National and Community Service; the Corporation for Public Broadcasting; the Delta Regional Authority; the Denali Commission; the Institute of Museum and Library Services; the Inter-American Foundation; the U.S. Trade and Development Agency; the Legal Services Corporation; the National Endowment for the Arts; the National Endowment for the Humanities; the neighborhood Reinvestment Corporation; the Northern Border Regional Commission; the Overseas Private Investment Corporation; the United States Institute of Peace; the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness; and the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.

According to a breakdown compiled by Business Insider:

  • Corporation for Public Broadcasting: Current budget, $445 million. CPB benefits mainly local public news stations, which receive 90 percent of the agency’s budget. National entities such as NPR and PBS also get small parts of their budgets through CPB.
  • Corporation for National and Community Service: Current budget, $1.1 billion. Cuts funding for AmeriCorps, the Clinton Administration’s program that places more than 80,000 people yearly in service projects, including the City Year program that provides volunteers for schools.
  • National Endowment for the Arts: Current budget, $148 million. Launched by President Lyndon B. Johnson and supports and promotes U.S. artists. Has been a subject of controversy for years after funding went to photographers like Andres Serrano, the person who displayed a photograph depicting a crucifix submerged in urine.
  • National Endowment for the Humanities: Current budget, $149 million. Provides grants for universities, libraries and more to strengthen studies in humanities and culture. Established by Johnson through the Arts and Humanities Act in 1965.
  • Appalachian Regional Commission: Current budget, $146 million. Partners with federal, state, and local governments to develop the economy of the Appalachian region, including 13 states reliant on the coal industry.
  • Delta Regional Authority: Current budget: $15 million. Economic-development agency serves eight-state Delta region, including Kentucky, Tennessee, Louisiana, and Mississippi.
  • Denali Commission: Most recent budget, $14 million in 2015. Focuses on Alaska and at one point had a budget of $150 million. Formed in 1998 by Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, to build power plants and roads, and also offers job training.
  • Northern Border Regional Commission: Current budget, $5 million. Works with distressed counties in Northeast border states including New York, Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. Established through 2008 Farm Bill.
  • U.S. Trade and Development Agency: Current budget, $80.7 million. Promotes U.S. exports, assists with overseas infrastructures. Links businesses with opportunities for foreign exports and supports efforts to mitigate climate change.
  • Overseas Private Investment Corporation: Most recent budget, $83.5 million in 2016. Works with private companies to develop financial infrastructure in foreign countries. Uses private capital and works with the private sector.
  • African Development Foundation: Current budget, $28.2 million. Supports and invests in African-owned businesses to help improve economies in 20 poverty-stricken African countries.
  • Inter-American Foundation: Current budget, $22.2 million. Focuses on developing non- government and grassroots organizations in the Caribbean and Latin America regions. Has awarded nearly 5,000 grants, totaling more than $600 million since 1972.
  • Legal Services Corp.: Current budget, $502 million. Funds civil legal aid for low-income recipients in the United States, helping deal with legal issues including family law, domestic violence and family law, housing and foreclosures, and veterans affairs.
  • Neighborhood Reinvestment Corp.: Current budget, $140 million. Also known as NeighborWorks America and housed in the Department of Housing and Urban Development, the agency helps urban, suburban, and rural areas’ community development organizations.
  • Institute of Museum and Library Services: Current budget, $230 million. Launched by the Clinton Administration and funds 35,000 local museums and 123,000 libraries across the country.
  • United States Institute of Peace: Most recent budget, 2011, $39.5 million. Established in 1984 by Congress under President Ronald Reagan with goal of preventing and mitigation overseas conflicts.
  • United States Interagency Council on Homelessness: Current budget, $5.4 million. Works to coordinate national solutions toward ending homelessness.
  • Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars: Current budget, $10.4 million. Founded through the Smithsonian Act of 1950, the center functions as a government-sponsored foreign-policy academic think tank.
  • Chemical Safety Board: Current budget, $11 million. The independent federal investigates industrial chemical accidents, and was established as part of the 1990 Clean Air Act.

Originally posted 2017-03-18 15:04:43.