Trump sharpens the knife on public spending in 2026 budget, reveals NYT

President Donald Trump’s administration is seeking to slash billions of dollars from programmes that support childcare, health research, education, and housing in its 2026 fiscal budget proposal, the New York Times reported on Friday.

The plan would also target community development and housing assistance, and is currently being finalised by the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (OMB), according to the report, which cited preliminary documents.

An OMB spokesperson said: “No final funding decisions have been made.”

The White House is expected to release the budget as soon as next week, the New York Times quoted two people familiar with the matter as saying.

A second measure, set to be released next week as well, would cut over $9 billion in previously approved spending for the current fiscal year. This includes funding for public media outlets PBS and NPR, the report added.

Since taking office in January, Trump has pushed to shrink the size of the federal government.

Earlier this year, Congress passed a broad Republican budget framework for the 2025 fiscal year. Though lacking in detail, it outlined major spending cuts and plans to extend tax breaks that are otherwise set to expire.