Acting Trump budget chief Russ Vought said Monday that the administration would provide ample funding for federal job training programs if Trump’s planned work requirements for welfare go into effect.
“There will be many workforce development programs funded as a result of this budget,” Vought said during a White House press briefing, though he did not go into specifics.
Trump’s budget for fiscal year 2020 proposes expanded work requirements for federal assistance programs. Earlier, Vought noted that the budget provides for hardship exceptions to the requirements, which would apply to food stamps, cash welfare, housing assistance, and Medicaid.
The majority of the $2.7 trillion in savings over 10 years identified in the budget come from social safety net programs. But the budget released Monday also cuts funding for the Departments of Labor and Education, which provide most job training assistance. The proposed budget, which is almost certainly dead on arrival, does identify continued funding aimed at workforce development in those departments.
Monday’s announcement is the administration’s opening bid high-stakes fiscal negotiations over government funding and the nation’s debt limit that will play out over the next several months. Though Trump’s budget for this coming fiscal year cuts domestic spending significantly, the deficit would still be over $1 trillion for the calendar year if those cuts were made.
[Read more: Here’s where Trump wants to cut the government]
