Terri Sewell holds Rural Roundtable at Federation’s RTRC in Epes.

Special to the Democrat by John Zippert, Co-Publisher

Congresswoman Terri Sewell held a Rural Roundtable, as part of her ‘Congress in your Community’ outreach program on Friday, September 5, 2025, at the Federation Rural Training Center in Epes, Alabama. Over 200 people attended from Sumter, Greene and other counties in her Alabama Seventh Congressional District.
Her Rural Roundtable included other speakers including Darren Beachem, ASAC State Coordinator; Loretta Webb Wilson, Administrator of Hill Hospital in York, and representatives of the West Alabama Regional Commission Council on Aging and a Representative of Sumter County DHR to speak on changes in the SNAP (Food Stamps) benefits program.
Congresswoman Sewell opened the program with comments on the conditions in Washington, D.C. following passage of the budget reconciliation bill, which President Trump calls his ‘Big Beautiful Bil’ and the Congresswoman called “the Big Ugly Bill.” Sewell said “if there is one word to describe conditions in our nation’s Capital, it would be chaotic! Trump changes his tariffs on a daily basis, he is firing people for no reason, he is cutting Federal programs and contracts and then reinstating them when courts order him to do so.”
Sewell said, “I want him to succeed, he is the President, but his policies are erratic, and he has cut Federal programs for the most vulnerable people while giving tax breaks to the very richest in our country. The tax cuts for the wealthy in the Big Ugly Bill increase the national debt by $4 Trillion dollars. In the bill, the average family gets a $200 tax cut but in exchange he is taking away healthcare, which will cost the same family, $2,000 a year in increased insurance payments, if they can afford these premiums, or be left with no health insurance at all.”
Loretta Webb Wilson spoke on the impacts of the healthcare cuts, which she says will hurt rural hospitals, like hers in York, and may force many to close or reduce already strained services. Sewell pointed out that the $50 billion fund for rural hospitals, is a five-year program with $10 billion a year, to make up for $200 billion in annual health care cuts, some which start soon, and others are to go into effect after the 2026 mid-term elections.
Darren Beachum, Federation staff member and State Coordinator of the Alabama State Association of Cooperatives spoke about technical assistance and support for Black farmers and other family scale farmers from the Federation and ASAC. Farmers can still get assistance in dealing with USDA agencies for credit, conservation, marketing and cooperative development from the Federation’s staff. He pointed out that the Federation had lost support for “climate smart agriculture” initiatives and a marketing program to foodbanks, where local farmers had been contracted to provide fresh and nutritious vegetables for food banks, serving low-income families, who are suffering from hunger and food deficiencies.
The speaker from the Tuscaloosa Office on Aging talked about information and resources for elders, available from her office. The speakers from the Sumter DHR Office spoke on coming changes in the SNAP (food stamp) program. Work requirements will be imposed on those from 18 to 64, in place of the current 55-year age limit. Work and alternative community service requirements of 20 hours per week, will be more strictly enforced and regularly reported, despite reductions in DHR staffing to handle the additional paperwork. The State of Alabama will have to pay more of the administrative costs for SNAP from its already strained budget.
Congresswoman Sewell then took about a half an hour of questions from the audience about the presentations. In answer to a question from Sumter County Commissioner, Drucilla Jackson, District 1 about cutbacks in funding for storm shelters and expansion of broadband to rural communities, Sewell said some of the direction and resources for these programs was still undecided but there would be cuts. “There is no way to dress-up these cutbacks in funding in Trump’s budget bill. We are going to have to fight back and try to restore these funding cuts now or after the 2026 midterms.
In answer to questions about Black farmers, she said she would refer them to the Federation for assistance. She pointed out that she had voted for the Discrimination Farmers Assistance Program (DFAP) in the Inflation Reduction Act, which provided a claims process for farmers to receive $2.2 Billion for past discrimination in farm loans by USDA. $384 million was distributed to over 10,000 BIPOC farmers in Alabama, many in her district.
Farmers in the audience pointed out that the Federation helped them file the 40-page application for DFAP assistance. Another farmer pointed out that the DFAP assistance was taxable, as opposed to the Pigford funding which was not considered taxable income by IRS. Recently one farmer, the Federation helped to receive the maximum $500,000 payment, had to pay IRS $127,000 of his award for Federal income taxes.
Sewell went on to warn that voting rights were under attack by Trump and his Republican supporters. She pushed for passage of the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act that she is the major sponsor. She said there is a case from Louisiana to come before the U. S. Supreme Court this term, which could strike down “majority-minority Congressional districts” by invalidating Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, and move the voting rights progress in our nation back by decades. She urged that Alabama voters need to watch this case closely because it could end in redistricting our state and end any Congressional representation for Black people in the state.
Sewell ended the Rural Roundtable by saying, “ Rural people are resilient and what goes around, comes around on Federal funding, so keep working, keep fighting and keep praying for better times.”