Good Afternoon Folks! 

I hope you all are doing well. I know I am still reeling from seeing so many of you wonderful people last month at the annual conference. 

Unfortunately, I must get back to my regularly scheduled programming and report to you about current governmental affairs. I say, 'unfortunately,' not for any lack of desire to follow and report the news, but because the news is not always optimism-inducing or uplifting. However, I have hope that with all of you passionate, talented people we can work together to stave off any threats to our programs and our students! 

So, getting to yesterday's FY 2021 budget proposal announcement, it is imperative that we remember that the budget has neither approved by the appropriate individuals, nor is it the final draft. Congress controls the federal spending levels each year and the President's proposal is just that: a proposal. This is the bright side. This gives us the time and opportunity to reach out to our Members of Congress, Chellie Pingree and Jared Golden, and inform them how TRIO has impacted students and families in your communities. 

As far as the language for the proposal is concerned, the most important pieces in regards to TRIO are as follows: 
-U.S. Department of Education program funding cut by $5.6 billion or 8%
-U.S. Department of Education's plan would consolidate TRIO into a single, state block grant program and cut overall funding for the programs by $140 million or 13%. A block grant is supported by federal funds but administered by state or local governments.
-This proposal would add an additional tightening of funds available for TRIO by consolidating with Gear Up and CAMP (College Access Migrant Program), which are currently funded at $365 million and $45.6 million, respectively.

The main things you can do would be to contact or meet face-to-face with your elected officials to stress the importance of our programs and how detrimental these budget cuts would be. Below you will find the contact information for the offices of Chellie Pingree and Jared Golden: 

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree                   Congressman Jared Golden
DC Office: (202) 225-6116                             DC Office: (202) 225-6306
Maine Office: (207) 774-5019                        Maine Office: (207) 249-7400

Please, never hesitate to reach out with any questions or concerns. I will try to keep you all updated as I receive any further information! 

Have a wonderful rest of your day, 

Eric 
--
Eric Pratt
Pronouns: He|Him|His

Academic Counselor 
MEEOA Government Relations Chair
Upward Bound | University of Maine at Farmington
252 Main Street
Farmington, ME 04938
C: 207.314.5499 | W: 207.778.7279
Toll Free: 1.888.237.1667