President Trump proposed cutting non-defense discretionary spending by 22%, but while spending more on food safety inspections, transportation projects, unfair trade investigations and a new program to fill “Make America Healthy Again” food boxes with local produce.

White House budget director Russell Vought outlined the president’s budget priorities in a letter May 2 to Senate Appropriations Committee Chairwoman Susan Collins, R-Maine.

The Trump administration reviewed the current budget and found it laden with “spending contrary to the needs of ordinary working Americans,” according to Vought.

Attached were brief descriptions of dozens of programs Trump proposes to eliminate, cut, expand or create. The president will submit a fuller fiscal plan later. The list was intended to let Congress begin debating appropriations bills, Vought said.

Programs related to climate change, renewable energy, environmental justice, and diversity, equity and inclusion were targeted for elimination. Trump proposed to cut $193 million from the Justice Department, including support for the division that prosecutes alleged environmental crimes.

Trump proposes increasing spending on defense, border security and some other programs. Overall, proposed cuts in most departments outweigh increases. The president proposes cutting the USDA by 18%, the Interior Department by 30% and the Environmental Protection Agency by 54%.

The $1.45 trillion spending plan, which doesn’t include entitlement programs such as Social Security, is $163 billion less than current discretionary spending.

Here are some of the proposals:

• A $15 million increase to the USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service to support increased food production.

• A $74 million increase in USDA rental assistance to rural residents. The increase will prevent the USDA from defaulting on loans it underwrote for multifamily housing.

• A $770 million increase to the Transportation Department for highway, port and freight rail projects. “This funding level would make America an even better place to do business,” the White House stated.

• A $134 million increase to the Commerce Department to investigate unfair trade complaints.

• $500 million for “Make America Healthy Again.” Health Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. would tackle nutrition, food quality, exercise, overreliance on medication and the impact of new technological habits.

A USDA program to supplement the diets of low-income seniors would use “Make America Healthy Again” food boxes, rather than food banks. “MAHA boxes would be filled with commodities sourced from domestic farmers and given directly to American households,” the White House stated.

• A $754 million cut to USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service technical assistance to landowners. The NRCS has helped some farmers, but other farmers have been forced to participate to comply with state environmental regulations, according to the White House.

• A $602 million cut to the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Programs related to climate change, renewable energy, and diversity, equity and inclusion would be cut. Funding would continue for 4-H Clubs, tribal colleges and universities. “The investment would help prepare future generations of farmers,” the White House stated.

• A $385 million cut to USDA Farm Service Agency. The White House called the agency “staff heavy” with underused offices. The agency plans on “improving online services so that farmers are receiving top-notch service,” the White House stated.

• A $240 million cut to a USDA program that buys commodities to donate overseas. The program undercuts prices in foreign markets and is neither efficient nor necessary, according to the White House. The program donated $37 million worth of U.S. commodities in 2023.

• A $159 million cut to the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service, Economic Research Service and National Agricultural Statistics Service. ERS and NASS would take small cuts. Funding would be cut for “research projects that aren’t of the highest national priority” and research stations that have “exceeded their ideal lifespan.”