After passing a final vote from the U.S. House of Representatives, President Trump has officially signed his “One Big Beautiful Bill” into law.
The legislation cuts nearly $1 trillion from Medicaid, with more reductions to SNAP– the federal food assistance program. The bill also phases out clean-energy tax credits passed under former President Joe Biden. The cuts are meant to offset the tremendous cost of extending Trump’s 2017 tax cuts and increased spending on defense and immigration enforcement.
Many economists have estimated that the legislation’s greatest benefits will go to the wealthiest Americans, who would see the most generous tax cuts.
The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office recently predicted that cuts to Medicaid, including the imposition of a strict work requirement, could leave 11.8 million more people without health insurance by 2034. At the same time, the budget office reported the measure would swell the already soaring national debt by at least $3.4 trillion over a decade.
Polls show that the bill is deeply unpopular, and Democrats have denounced it as a move to slash critical government programs to fund tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans. They have repeatedly accused Republicans of being so beholden to Trump that they embraced a bill that would harm their own constituents, with cuts to programs that the president had vowed to protect.
Here is how some of those cuts could impact programs in North Carolina.
SNAP benefit cuts
Currently, 1.4 million North Carolinians utilize SNAP, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. Under this bill, that number would shrink.
The Big Beautiful Bill would require states to pay a portion of costs for SNAP. It would also tighten eligibility by expanding work requirements to include adults up to age 64, compared to the current age limit of 54. It would also require parents with children older than 6 to work.
Right now, SNAP is 100% federally funded. Beginning in 2028, states would be required to cover at least 5% of the program’s costs. States with high error rates could see that percentage increase. According to USDA data, North Carolina had a payment error rate of 10.21% in 2024. This means, under the bill, the state would have to pay for 10% of the benefits and cover more administrative costs. Overall, the projected cuts to SNAP will total around $230 billion over 10 years.
Dozens of lawmakers, including Congresswoman Alma Adams from Charlotte, urged House leadership to remove the SNAP provisions from the bill. On Thursday, Protesters in Charlotte expressed concern about the impact on top of existing program delays and understaffing.
The NC Department of Health and Human Services warned that cuts could hit some regions, including western North Carolina, especially hard.
Private school voucher program expansion
The legislation would create a federal voucher-like program available to families who want help paying for their student’s private school education. Individuals can knock $1,700 off their tax bill if they donate to an organization supporting this effort.
The proposal could build on an existing state-level initiative in North Carolina. North Carolina lawmakers expanded the state’s voucher program by more than $460 million last year. It also made the program available to those of any income level, including the state’s wealthiest families.
However, critics argue the expansion primarily benefits families who were already using private schools. Public Schools First North Carolina found that 87% of new state voucher recipients this year had never attended public school.
“In Mecklenburg County, 58% of the vouchers this year went to families in the tiers that were too wealthy to have received vouchers in previous years, so this year is the first year that any family, even if they’re millionaires, can qualify to receive state funds,” said Heather Koons, Director of Research and Communications at Public Schools First NC.
The North Carolina Association of Educators released a statement urging lawmakers to reconsider the federal proposal, saying it would harm students “by diverting public funds to private school vouchers and draining resources from the schools that serve the vast majority of our students.”
Electricity rate debate
North Carolina Governor Josh Stein warns that the federal bill could increase electricity rates by 18% in the state. Michael Thomas, who runs the national tracking company Clean View, said the bill could spike electricity costs across the country due to provisions that eliminate tax credits for new green energy projects.
“There’s no doubt this bill is going to increase electricity prices all over the country,” Thomas said. “In states like North Carolina, folks can expect their bills to go up about 18%.”
Dan O’Brien with Energy Innovation said their modeling shows the average North Carolina household would see power bills rise to about $700 more per year.
How legislators are reacting
All Republicans in North Carolina’s House delegation voted in favor of the bill, while all Democrats opposed it.
North Carolina’s Sen. Thom Tillis was one of three Republicans who voted against the bill. He warned in a speech that it would cause 663,000 people to lose coverage gained through Medicaid expansion. Tillis, who announced his retirement that day, said the bill amounted to Trump breaking his promise to Americans.
North Carolina’s other senator, Republican Ted Budd, supported the bill, citing the bill’s “responsible spending reforms for government programs.”
Rep. Chuck Edwards of Flat Rock in Henderson County had expressed discontent with the Senate version of the bill, joining 15 other lawmakers in signing a letter to Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune. On July 2, Edwards said a meeting with the White House “didn’t sway my opinion.” The next day, he voted in favor of the bill, which remained largely unchanged. A day later, he issued a statement praising the legislation.
Similarly, Rep. Greg Murphy of Greenville had said he had concerns about funding for rural hospitals that serve low-income communities, but he ultimately supported the bill anyway.
Meanwhile, Democrats in the House were united in their opposition. Rep. Don Davis of Snow Hill said on X that he is deeply concerned that “the average hardworking family in eastern North Carolina will bear the brunt of H.R. 1’s out-of-touch spending, as the wealthiest individuals and Washington D.C. insiders stand to benefit the most.”
And Rep. Deborah Ross of Raleigh said on X that under Trump’s direction, “House Republicans have done the unimaginable,” citing health care cuts and cuts to nutrition assistance for millions.
