The Farm Bill is set to expire soon and Congress must act. We need a comprehensive farm bill that would restore food assistance, bolster capacity to find world hunger, support farmers and strengthen rural communities. Share your values and experiences to push past partisan disagreements.

The reauthorization of the Farm Bill faces a critical moment. This comprehensive legislation, which governs our nation’s food, agriculture, nutrition and rural infrastructure programs, remains stalled due to partisan disagreements over funding, pitting hunger, farm conservation and commodity subsidies against each other. This comes as the Farm Bill has been given only temporary extensions since it was last passed in 2018. It will expire if no action is taken before October 1, 2025, leaving many “orphan” and emergency farm programs unfunded, allowing nuanced strategic policies to fall out of-date, and continuing a cycle of uncertainty for farmers to maintain their livelihoods.  

Our interconnectedness is emphasized in ELCA social teaching (see the ELCA social statement Sufficient, Sustainable Livelihood for All), recognizing that farmers, families that rely on food assistance and those of us in-between are all part of God’s beloved community. Many church food pantries, hunger ministries, volunteers and food bank partners are crucial to delivering reliable hunger assistance nationwide and are concerned by recent policy developments that would significantly limit SNAP assistance and harm millions of families. And as rural America faces building challenges – from a destructive weather season for agriculture to declining population and a severe labor shortage – confident policy clarity and infrastructure support are needed now more than ever.  

Congress must pass a comprehensive farm bill that strengthens rural communities, supports sustainable agriculture, ensures robust nutrition programs,  addresses climate challenges and authorizes international food aid programs.

As the House of Representatives aspires to schedule a late committee vote at the end of October, lawmakers should know that any farm bill should restore recently cut food assistance, meet demand for over-subscribed conservation programs, bolster our capacity to fight global hunger and be adequate for farmers across the nation. The current extension expires soon, and further delays only increase uncertainty for farmers and families alike.  

What are you seeing in your community? Share your customized message with your values and experiences. Thank you for your advocacy.   

On October 1, 2025, renters in Nevada will have more protections from predatory junk fees and practices in their next leases! During the 2025 Nevada Legislative Session, Lutheran Engagement and Advocacy in Nevada, advocated for the passage of Assembly Bill 121, that will ensure what you pay monthly is the rent agreed to in your lease and more! These new protections for tenants will bring fairness and transparency to the rental process and leases. 

Despite bipartisan support for at-risk Afghans, the administration has wound down an office in the State Department to resettle Afghan refugees and Special Immigrant Visa recipients. 

Now, a bill to support Afghan relocation efforts is gaining support in the U.S. House of Representatives. Contact your House member today to urge them to join this Global Refuge-endorsed bill or to ensure its passage. 

Thousands of at-risk Afghans were left behind in the aftermath of the 2021 withdrawal and evacuation from Afghanistan.

In the years following the withdrawal, an office in the State Department called the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts (CARE) made tremendous strides to streamline Afghan refugee and Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) processing for Afghans, to relocate eligible Afghans out of Afghanistan, to process and vet them in third countries like Qatar and Albania, and to coordinate resettlement efforts in the United States.

Recognizing those strides, Congress voted in December 2024 to authorize this office to continue its work for three more years.

Yet, the CARE office’s operations have wound down this year due to policy decisions by the administration– lapsing contracts, laying off staff, suspending refugee resettlement, and freezing relocation assistance out of Afghanistan.

In August, Rep. Kamlager-Dove of California, Rep. McCaul of Texas, Rep. Titus of Nevada, and Rep. Lawler of New York introduced the bipartisan Enduring Welcome Act. This bill would further reinforce CARE’s statutory mandate and further clarify the scope of its work. It would also codify the office for five years, past the current Congressional authorization through the end of 2027.

Parts of the Enduring Welcome Act were included in the larger State Department Reauthorization Act effort in the House, reflecting a bipartisan willingness to build momentum for the Enduring Welcome Act and to ensure that the work of CARE continues.

As Afghan SIVs continue to travel to the United States and the administration weighs the future of the U.S. refugee program, the Enduring Welcome Act is a timely piece of legislation to strengthen and protect Afghan resettlement in the months and years ahead.

Reach out to your House member today to urge them to co-sponsor HR 4995 or support its inclusion in a larger piece of legislation like State Reauthorization or the National Defense Authorization Act process.

ELCA advocacy staff sent a statement to members of Congress and the White House Faith Office on Sep. 24 which “strongly urges the members of Congress and President Trump to return to the negotiating table now and work in a bipartisan manner to fund the government.” The U.S. government could run out of funding on Oct. 1 if Congress does not pass new legislation.

Read Here.

The fight over next year’s federal education budget has begun. Congress and the White House have released competing proposals for funding the nation’s K–12 schools in fiscal year 2026.

Education advocates warn that these plans would impose steep cuts on the nation’s most vulnerable students and disadvantaged school communities.

Under the House Appropriations Committee’s plan, the U.S. Department of Education would face a 15% cut, reducing its budget to about $67 billion. Within that, Title I funding — the largest federal program supporting schools that serve children from low-income families — would be cut by about 26–27%. This threatens critical services such as reading and math intervention, tutoring, and other supports for students.

The House plan also eliminates Title II funding (which supports professional development for educators) and Title III funding (which provides dedicated support for English learners).

The White House has proposed a different approach: consolidating 18 existing K–12 funding streams into a single $2 billion block grant. While this is not a direct cut to Title I, it would significantly reduce dedicated funding for programs such as rural schools, civics education, and support for students experiencing homelessness.

Together, these proposals would reshape how federal education dollars reach communities — and leave schools serving high-need students with far fewer resources.