Mandaree, ND - The passage of the One Big Beautiful Bill into law marks a turning point for our communities, and not for the better. With the Senate and House both approving this sweeping legislation on razor-thin margins, and Vice President Vance breaking the tie, Congress has now cemented into law a bill that prioritizes billionaires over the people who make this country work.

“This bill is a betrayal of our values,” said North Dakota State Representative Lisa Finley-DeVille. “It gives away trillions in tax breaks to the ultra-wealthy while gutting the basic lifelines that keep our elders, caregivers, and working families afloat—especially in tribal and rural communities.”

This law will have major consequences for our rural communities by making massive cuts to Medicaid and SNAP. Based on independent projections, including from the Congressional Budget Office and nonpartisan health policy experts, estimate that 7.8 million people could lose Medicaid under this law’s eligibility restrictions and punitive work requirements.

As a result, up to 10.9 million Americans could become uninsured by 2034, increasing avoidable deaths due to delayed or inaccessible care. Research shows that for every 830 people who lose coverage, one preventable death occurs, translating into more than 51,000 preventable deaths annually.

In North Dakota, rural hospitals that rely on Medicaid funding will face cuts, resulting in higher premiums, more medical debt, and reduced access to care.

The law imposes strict work requirements and complex eligibility redeterminations that ignore the economic realities of reservation life, where high unemployment and caregiving responsibilities are common. Native elders, people with disabilities, and single parents will face new barriers to keeping or accessing healthcare and food assistance. Meanwhile, the bill includes no new investments in Indian Health Service, tribal housing, or infrastructure, ignoring calls from tribal leaders.

“It’s a continuous story of federal neglect,” said Finley-DeVille. “We’re being forced closer to the edge of a fiscal cliff and there’s no lifeline in sight.”

Claiming to reduce spending, the bill adds $2.4 to $2.8 trillion to the national debt by 2034, according to estimates modeled on its tax and spending provisions.

It delivers an estimated $1.3 trillion in tax cuts to the wealthiest 1%, by slashing top income, estate, and capital gains taxes, benefiting corporations and billionaires, not working families. At the same time, it eliminates many clean energy tax credits passed in the Inflation Reduction Act, threatening tribal and rural renewable energy projects and raising household utility costs.

Senators John Hoeven and Kevin Cramer, along with Representative Julie Fedorchak, voted in favor of this law, endorsing deep cuts to healthcare, food assistance, and energy programs that sustain our state.

“They chose party loyalty and donor priorities over the health and dignity of North Dakotans; I don’t understand the payoff.” Finley-DeVille said. “Their votes tell us exactly where they stand, and it’s not with us.”

I know firsthand how crucial these programs are because they helped me when I was raising my five children on Ft. Berthold Reservation. Even though my husband and I were both working, we barely made ends meet. Programs like Medicaid and SNAP made it possible for us to get through some of the hardest times, and they gave me and my children the support we needed to pursue our college educations. Cutting them now means pulling the rug out from under families who are doing everything right but still struggling to get by.

“Our people have endured centuries of broken promises and political indifference,” Finley-DeVille said. “But we are still here, still fighting. We will speak out, and demand a future where our people are seen, heard, and cared for not sacrificed for political gain.”