Investing.com -- On Friday, President Donald Trump presented his budget proposal for fiscal year 2026, advocating for substantial reductions in non-defense discretionary spending, including education, health, housing, and labor, amounting to about $163 billion. Concurrently, the budget calls for a 13% increase in defense spending, raising it to $1.01 trillion.
The White House said this is the lowest non-defense spending level since 2017.
The budget reflects Trump’s agenda, emphasizing a significant reorganization of the federal government. It suggests closing federal offices. The proposed cuts include more than half of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s budget, reducing it to $4 billion from approximately $9 billion, and a $12 billion decrease in education spending.
The budget proposes a $500 million allocation for Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s initiative, "Make America Healthy Again." Additionally, it outlines a reduction of over $500 million from the FBI budget, stating the administration’s intent to reverse the "weaponization" of the agency that allegedly occurred under the Biden administration.
Defense and homeland security are the sectors to receive budget increases, with the latter seeing a nearly 65% boost to $175 billion to support border security. These increases are to be facilitated through budget reconciliation, allowing them to pass with simple majorities in Congress.
The budget also aims to achieve "American Energy Dominance" by canceling over $15 billion in green energy funds from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and redirecting the Department of Energy’s focus towards fossil fuel and nuclear energy research. It further proposes the elimination of $5.7 billion in IIJA funding for electric vehicle charger grant programs.
In education, the budget continues efforts to dismantle the Department of Education, maintaining funding for Title I and special education while consolidating various grant programs to give states more flexibility. The proposal includes a $500 million investment to expand charter schools.
To support veterans, the budget allocates increased funding for healthcare services and provides $50 billion from the Toxic Exposures Fund. It also ensures no changes to Social Security benefits, with additional resources for the Social Security Administration to improve services and combat fraud.
The budget outlines plans for NASA, focusing on lunar exploration and Mars missions, with over $7 billion dedicated to the former and $1 billion to the latter. It also realigns foreign aid to be consistent with U.S. foreign policy and prioritizes funding for the Drug Enforcement Administration to target drug traffickers.
Finally, the budget maintains funding for artificial intelligence and quantum research and proposes the creation of a Federal Wildland Fire Service within the Department of the Interior to streamline wildfire management.
The White House said the passage of the budget "will be made possible through the passage of President Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill, which will be enacted with a simple majority in the Congress and cannot be held hostage by Democrats for wasteful spending increases."
House Speaker Mike Johnson said the budget "makes clear that fiscal discipline is non-negotiable."
"Our country cannot continue to bear the hard consequences of years of runaway spending under Democratic leadership, and this budget makes clear that fiscal discipline is non-negotiable," Johnson stated. "President Trump’s plan ensures every federal taxpayer dollar spent is used to serve the American people, not a bloated bureaucracy or partisan pet projects."