A bill to claw back billions of dollars already approved for public broadcasting and foreign aid is a step closer to becoming law, as the U.S. Senate advanced the rescission package early Thursday. Most of the funding at stake, $7.9 billion, is for foreign aid programs, including USAID.
Christy Delafield is a humanitarian aid worker who lives in Boalsburg, just outside of State College. She said she’s done foreign assistance work in Syria, Yemen, Nepal, South Sudan and Nigeria, with many of those projects funded through USAID.
“I ask people, 'What would you want Americans to know?' And one of the first things that they say is, 'Thank you. Tell people at home, thank you. You did this for my sister. You got food for my baby,'" Delafield said. "And there's a responsibility when you hear somebody say that to share it.”
Delafield said many projects have already ended since DOGE made cuts to USAID earlier this year.
President Trump says USAID is rife with waste, fraud and abuse, but several officials at the State Department and USAID told NPR there was no formal review of funding.
The Senate added a provision to the bill to save PEPFAR funding, or President’s Emergency Funds for AIDS Relief. Delafield said that gives some reason to celebrate.
“I'm optimistic that we'll do the best we can with what's remaining," Delafield said. "And I'm really, really sad, honestly, about the parts that can't continue.”
Delafield said there’s a wide range of support programs that could be affected, including maternal child health, malaria and tuberculosis. But at this point, she said it’s hard to know for sure where cuts will be made.
Delafield also said many Pennsylvanians don't realize how foreign aid helps communities in the United States. Farmers often sell surplus goods to international markets.
“You know, Pennsylvania dairy farmers every year sell 7 million pounds of milk powder and whey that goes to create an emergency food, therapeutic food that goes to starving children," Delafield said. "So it's a really strong connection between our community and communities overseas.”
The rescission bill also takes back more than a billion dollars toward public broadcasting. WPSU stands to lose more than $1 million annually if the bill passes. The House has to vote by midnight Friday.
