Responding to the Administration’s FY2026 Budget Request

June 3, 2025 • Press Release
Washington, DC
Contact: sarahgrucza@ncaf.org

Statement from National Community Action Foundation CEO David Bradley in response to the release of the president’s Fiscal Year 2026 budget request: 

“It's disappointing and frankly, surprising to see that the president's proposed budget eliminates funding for the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG). CSBG is a locally-led approach to tackling poverty that leverages a limited federal investment to help over ten million hard-working Americans achieve economic independence. 

As recently as 2022, the House of Representatives, with an overwhelming bipartisan show of support, passed reauthorization for this program. The Community Services Block Grant has a proven track record of being a high-impact, fiscally responsible investment that aligns with American values of self-reliance, free enterprise, and local decision-making. With FY24 funding of only $770 million – compared to most programs whose funding starts in the billions – CBSG has a high return-on-investment and low administrative cost. It’s confusing to see the CSBG targeted by an administration that champions those very priorities. 

Rising housing and healthcare costs, and a changing job market, continue to push new people into unmanageable financial hardship every day. Poverty impacts Americans in nearly every city, county, and state across the country, but the similarity between communities ends there. The issues confronting rural America stand in sharp contrast to those faced by our urban communities. There can’t be a federal one-size-fits-all solution. 

CSBG funds are granted to states and delivered through Community Action Agencies, trusted local organizations tasked with fighting for hard-working, aspirational Americans faced with unique barriers. Community Action Agencies are problem-solvers; they cut down on Washington’s red tape and get straight to work delivering custom programs and results in their neighborhoods. 

As a decades-old, effective solution, CSBG is not a program that normally makes the news. It was never brought up during the presidential campaign. The news that CSBG has been targeted for elimination is blindsiding state and local governments, and organizations across the country, who never thought such a popular program could be targeted for elimination.”