(AURN News) — Sweeping legislation championed by President Donald Trump could deliver sizable gains to the wealthy while stripping away key support for low-income Americans, according to a new analysis by Yale University’s nonpartisan Budget Lab.
The data shows that under competing House and Senate versions of Trump’s so-called “Big Beautiful Bill,” the poorest Americans would face a direct loss in income, while high earners would reap thousands in annual tax benefits.
At the heart of the issue are cuts to programs like Medicaid and SNAP that millions of Americans rely on just to survive.
The Senate plan would reduce annual after-tax income by about $695 for households earning less than $13,000 per year. The House version would shave $600 off that same group’s annual income — equivalent to a 2.5% to 2.9% drop.
That’s no small hit for families already living on the edge.
Meanwhile, middle-income households — those earning between $36,000 and $65,000 — would see modest gains of $660 to $720 annually. That’s about a 1.3% bump in take-home pay, according to Yale’s report.
It is a different story for wealthier Americans.
Upper-middle-income earners making up to $114,000 per year would walk away with about $1,700 in tax savings under the House bill and $1,565 under the Senate plan.
The cuts would begin phasing in starting in 2026 and extend through 2034 if passed as written.
Yale’s findings confirm what critics of the legislation have warned for months — that the bill redistributes wealth upward while pulling back vital safety nets for those at the bottom.
Click play to listen to the AURN News report from Jamie Jackson:
