Proposed Trump Admin Program Cuts Would Be Catastrophic For Working Families and Vulnerable Children
A Statement From Community Teamwork CEO Carl Howell
Dear Community Teamwork Stakeholders and Community,
May is recognized nationally as Community Action Month – a time to celebrate the power of community-driven solutions to fight poverty and uplift lives. At Community Teamwork, we are proud to be part of this movement, rooted in the belief that every community deserves the tools and resources to thrive.
This year, the celebration is coupled with urgency.
Community Action Agencies across the country are facing an existential threat. The Trump administration’s proposed elimination of the Community Service Block Grant (CSBG) and the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), as well as funding for AmeriCorps programming — all of which serve as a foundation for assisting and uplifting millions of Americans each year – would not only dismantle the very foundation of our work – it would erase vital lifelines for millions of families in our community and across the country.
We must mobilize now to ensure that the critical services of CSBG, Head Start, and LIHEAP continue. Congress maintains the power to develop and pass its own budget, and we need your help to ensure that these critical programs, that have had bipartisan support for decades, are protected.
Under the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG), Community Action Agencies across the country are able to reduce poverty, revitalize communities, and help families become self-sufficient. CAAs reach more than nine million people each year through programs like Head Start, LIHEAP, and others that meet the local needs for jobs, youth development, asset-building, food and housing assistance and more.
At Community Teamwork, elimination of this programming will leave neighbors throughout our Greater Lowell community with no access to the vital resources that have helped their families survive and get out of poverty for over 60 years.
CDGB Funding empowers local communities to shape their own solutions to meet their needs. At Community Teamwork, it has enabled us to launch programs tailored to Greater Lowell’s unique needs – from our walk-in Resource Center to our Youth Opportunity Center that supports young adults facing housing and food insecurity. It has allowed us to respond nimbly during crises and build innovative supports like our Rita O’Brien-Dee Center for Behavioral Health for children and families, and initiate the first in the area Women’s Shelter.
Community Teamwork’s LIHEAP program provides heating assistance to close to 8000 households in Greater Lowell each year. This critical assistance keeps families safe in their homes
during the frigid winter months by preventing dangerous heating practices, repairing or replacing broken heating systems, and it helps them spread their limited resources to cover basic needs as energy bills continue to climb. Nationwide, LIHEAP assists six million households, and in states with warmer climates, provides cooling assistance that prevents heat stroke and death.
As part of Community Teamwork’s community, we need you now more than ever. We deeply value your support in this turbulent time. Please support these vital services by taking action:
- Use the following to contact government officials to express support: National Energy & Utility Affordability Coalition LIHEAP Action Toolkit . We encourage you to modify the template, to reflect any personal insights you feel comfortable sharing.
- Share information near and far about the positive impact of CSBG programs, Head Start, and LIHEAP with your community via email and social media.
- Learn more about CSBG and its impact at the National Community Action Foundation website.
- Encourage anyone you know who has benefited from these programs or Community Teamwork, to share their stories with us by emailing Communications@commteam.org
Since opening our doors in 1965, Community Teamwork has supported more than a million residents – thanks in part to CSBG and other cornerstone programs like Head Start, Fuel Assistance, AmeriCorps, and Housing Supports. We won’t stop advocating, organizing and lifting up the stories that show how powerful these programs truly are.
Community Teamwork and community action programs nationwide have faced such threats before, and together with our allies, we prevailed on behalf of people facing the most challenging economic barriers. With your help, we can do it again.
Together let’s fight for the life-changing and necessary services that we provide to our community. Together, we are the voice, the movement and the catalyst for change.
With gratitude and resolve,
Carl Howell, CEO
