President Donald Trump signed his “One Big, Beautiful Bill” into law on July 4, and Fresno will experience some significant effects. Here is everything to know about how the bill will affect Fresno and Fresno State.

Increased funding for agriculture

The agricultural sector is receiving some major funding from the reconciliation bill. Farm programs are receiving $66 billion, while small business farms are receiving a 23% tax deduction. This mostly benefits commodity growers, like soybeans, wheat and rice, while Fresno focuses more on specialty crops like grapes, almonds and pistachios.

Jake Dowell, an agricultural communications major at Fresno State, shared some details on how the reconciliation bill affects Fresno farmers directly.

“Essentially, H.R. 1 [the big, beautiful bill] will increase funding for research and development programs, which means that as a land-grant university, Fresno State could see some of that money,” Dowell said.

A land-grant university is essentially a university that is granted land by the government to educate students about practices like farming and engineering. While Fresno State is not technically one of the original land-grant universities created by the Morrill Act, it still functions as a land-grant and receives benefits from this funding.

The bill also outlines more funding toward research on specialty crops, which Fresno leads the nation in. In 2023, Fresno County reached a record-breaking value in agricultural output, totalling around $8.5 billion.

So, what does more funding for specialty crops mean for Fresno? It means farmers are more protected if prices for said crops fall under a certain reference price. Most of the covered commodities listed here are not the most grown crops in Fresno, but they do provide some more expansion for cotton and chickpea growers.

One part of the agricultural sector that the bill does not explicitly mention is the status of undocumented farmworkers. While the Trump administration has mentioned that there won’t be amnesty for undocumented farmworkers, there is a bipartisan push for the Farm Workforce Modernization Act that would grant farmworkers temporary legal status.

“There will need to be some adjustments made to our immigration policy as it pertains to farmworkers without citizenship or visas,” Dowell said. “Right now, the Trump administration says they’re working on a solution to that, but nothing significant seems to have happened so far.”

Cuts to TRIO programs

Education is receiving significant cuts from the reconciliation bill, totalling over $330 billion. Lots of programs risk significant, if not complete, cuts to their funding. Some of these programs are TRIO programs, which are expected to receive around $1.6 billion in cuts.

TRIO programs were established in the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964 under President Lyndon B. Johnson. These programs are meant to serve disadvantaged and first-generation students by helping them transition to college and careers.

Around 100,000 students in California are enrolled in TRIO programs and will be affected by these cuts.

Fresno State offers various TRIO programs such as the Student Support Services Program (SSSP), Upward Bound and Educational Talent Search. All of these programs provide undergraduates and future bulldogs with academic support, improved graduation rates and financial aid counseling.

Jim Boren, a Fresno State journalism professor and former political reporter, explained the impact of TRIO programs on Fresno State students.

“Programs like Upward Bound have a proven track record of helping students succeed in higher education, making the proposed reductions particularly troubling for our students,” Boren said.

Other schools in Fresno County, like Fresno City College and Reedley College, also offer extensive TRIO programs.

With cuts to education underway, the future of TRIO programs is looking obsolete.

Cuts to Medicaid and SNAP

One of the biggest cuts that came out of the reconciliation bill is Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which are slated to receive over $1.3 trillion in cuts combined over the next 10 years.

The purpose of Medicaid and SNAP is to support low-income individuals and families when it comes to receiving healthcare and food assistance. These programs have been around for over 60 years and are currently serving over 100 million people in the United States.

Around 52% of residents in Fresno rely on Medicaid and SNAP (called Medi-Cal and CalFresh in California). Now, these residents are in danger of potentially losing their coverage.

Congressman Jim Costa, whose district covers Fresno State, shared a statement regarding these cuts.

“Healthcare is essential as the majority of the people that I represent rely on Medicaid, Medicare and SNAP,” Costa said. “But this bill guts those services and puts rural hospitals at risk of closure, while adding $4 trillion to the deficit. That’s not fiscal responsibility, but a direct attack on the communities I represent.”

Fresno State currently offers CalFresh assistance at the Amendola Family Student Cupboard, which students can apply for from the website. With around $300 billion being cut from SNAP, students may find it harder to receive assistance.

“Essentially, if you’re a Fresno State Student in these programs, you should expect less of that support,” Dowell said. “If the state of California wants to continue supporting programs like SNAP for its citizens, it will likely have to step up its own programs.”

With drastic cuts to both these programs, students may find it harder to keep up with rising costs and school fees.

“Cuts to Medicaid and other essential services will directly impact their families—many of whom live at or below the poverty line—placing even greater pressure on students already struggling to stay in school,” Boren said.