Rep. Neguse Hosts Community Roundtable on Challenges Facing Families in Northern Colorado
“As communities across Colorado struggle to fill the gaps left in key programs due to the Trump administration’s reckless policies, our kids are the ones facing the consequences.”
Lafayette, CO — Earlier this week, Colorado Congressman Joe Neguse hosted local leaders from across Larimer County for a roundtable discussion about the challenges impacting families in Northern Colorado, including the consequences of draconian federal aid cuts on kids across the state.
According to recent public reports, Colorado’s children will face the brunt of cuts to federal support for healthcare, childcare, and education and food assistance programs enacted by President Trump and Congressional Republicans’ so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.”
“As communities across Colorado struggle to fill the gaps left in key programs due to the Trump administration’s reckless policies, our kids are the ones facing the consequences. Hundreds of thousands of Colorado children rely on federal healthcare support, and hundreds of thousands more rely on food assistance programs,” said Congressman Neguse. “I’m incredibly grateful to the folks across Larimer County who are stepping in — ensuring families have access to the resources they need to thrive. As we continue to see the dire consequences of Trump’s policies, it is imperative that we adopt an all-hands-on-deck approach to setting the next generation up for success.”
Among the programs on the Trump administration’s chopping block, more than 600,000 kids in Colorado receive health insurance through Medicaid or the Child Health Plan Plus; 355,000 people depend on food assistance through SNAP; roughly 51,000 receive monthly cash assistance through the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program; and nearly 28,000 rely on federal child care assistance dollars.
“About 50% of SNAP recipients in Colorado are children. So, children are disproportionately impacted by these cuts.” said Amy Pezzani, Food Bank of Larimer County. “As well, and I think this is shocking, $500,000 a month was lost in just our Larimer County economy due to those SNAP benefits being cut so money no longer being spent at our local farmers markets and grocery stores.”
“It's not just the children and families that are getting impacted. More than 15% of early educators across the state of Colorado with and below the poverty line, these are people that are already struggling with basic needs and are trying to show up for children day in and day out to help raise them and grow them into our next generation,” said Christina Taylor, Northern Colorado Kids Thrive. “And these are folks that are getting heavily impacted by SNAP and Medicaid cuts, housing insecurity, food insecurity.”
“Regarding H.R. 1, the biggest challenges are fewer resources, administrative burden, and uncertainty. For example, the federal government provides unclear direction regarding the implementation of proposed changes to SNAP and Medicaid, such as work requirements and recertification. This lack of clarity makes it very difficult to plan for and deliver human services to people struggling to make ends meet, and to fulfill our partnership responsibilities with community-based organizations to ensure people dealing with family crises receive support,” said John Kefalas, Larimer County Commissioner.
Neguse, who at 42 years-old is the youngest Democrat in Colorado’s federal delegation, has two small children. He has made it a priority to speak up for kids and their families, supporting next-generation efforts to make childcare more affordable and accessible, expand mental health services, advance public safety in schools, and more.
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