New Look, Same Commitment to Advocacy
While United Way of Salt Lake’s website and Policy Matters newsletter may look a little different, our commitment to advocating for policies that support Utah kids and families remains the same. We recently launched our new website, and there are a few changes to note. The Advocate landing page will still be your primary hub for resources – a link to sign up for action alerts, a tool to learn who the senators and representatives are for your district, and tips for lobbying dos and don’ts. The legislative bill tracker has been moved from the main “Advocate” landing page to a landing page where you can easily access it and stay up to date on our priority bills during the legislative session.
We are also shifting from sending our Policy Matters newsletter via email to posting Policy Matters on the United Way of Salt Lake blog. There will be an “Advocacy Update” section in our new Impact Newsletter, which will include a short summary and a link to access the full blog each month. We know things can change quickly in the world of public policy, so you might still receive an occasional Policy Update email if something urgent or time-sensitive comes up. We will still send our weekly Policy Matters emails during the legislative session. We hope streamlining our communications helps to declutter your inbox while still providing meaningful updates on everything going on at United Way of Salt Lake.
Federal Updates
Since we last wrote, Congress passed reconciliation (“The Big Beautiful Bill”) and the Rescissions Act of 2025, the President signed several new executive orders, and certain program and education funds were frozen and then unfrozen. It’s been extremely challenging to keep up with all of the changes and their current or potential impacts. We do know that many of these actions will negatively impact individuals, communities, and partners in Utah:
- 65,000 Utahns in the Medicaid expansion population are at risk of losing health coverage with new administrative requirements that make it more difficult to access insurance.
- 15,000 Utahns could lose health coverage because of the ending of enhanced premium tax credits that help low- and middle-income families afford health insurance.
- Access to Medicare, Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and affordable ACA marketplace coverage has been terminated for refugees, asylees, and certain victims of domestic violence or human trafficking.
- 13,000 Utahns are at risk of losing food assistance (SNAP benefits) due to new administrative burdens.
- Access to food assistance has been terminated for refugees, asylees, and certain victims of domestic violence or human trafficking. In 2023, this was approximately 3,000 people.
- Utah’s share of participating in the SNAP food benefit program will increase by $19 million to $57 million. If the state legislature cannot come up with the funds, it will either need to reduce the number of people eligible for the program or opt out of the program entirely.1
These are just some of the impacts, with more analysis being done and work ahead of us to ensure programs stay viable in Utah and that they are implemented with the least amount of harm to individuals.
Regarding recent funding freezes, many of our partners were not sure if they would be able to continue to provide out-of-school programming. After school programs are a key partner in providing children safe, developmentally appropriate spaces to be while their parents are working. Luckily these funds were released, but we still have concerns that funding for these crucial programs could be cut or eliminated in the future.
What’s Coming Up
After taking July off, the Utah Legislature will convene August 19 for Appropriation Committees and August 20 for Interim Committees. Agendas are typically posted the Monday before. You can find them on the legislature website.
Congress is now in the process of writing budget bills. We will send more information on the impact of recent federal decisions as things develop and will keep everyone posted on any action that can be taken or advocacy needed around funding for key partner programs.
It’s easy to feel overwhelmed by everything going on, but with so much at stake, please remember that your voice matters. Join us in advocating to make sure our state and federal representatives do what’s best for Utah kids and families.
Written by Elizabeth Garbe, Vice President of Public Policy
- Data from the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
