DES MOINES, Iowa — A 30-year-old community service program that sends young adults to work on projects across the U.S. was the latest target of the Trump administration ‘s campaign to slash government spending.

AmeriCorps’ National Civilian Community Corps informed volunteers Tuesday that they would exit the program early “due to programmatic circumstances beyond your control,” according to an email obtained by The Associated Press.

The unsigned memo to corps members said NCCC’s “ability to sustain program operations” was impacted by the Trump administration’s priorities and President Donald Trump’s executive order creating the Department of Government Efficiency. Members would be officially dismissed April 30.

AmeriCorps did not respond Wednesday to an AP email seeking comment.

AmeriCorps NCCC, which completed its 30th year last year, employs more than 2,000 people ages 18 to 26 participating for a roughly 10-month service term, according to the program’s website. The teams of corps members are tasked with working on several projects related to education, housing, urban and rural development, land conservation, and disaster relief, driving from one assignment to another across the country.

The agency pays for volunteers’ basic expenses, including housing, meals and a “limited health benefit,” as well as a “modest” living allowance, according to the program. The program also provided members who complete their 1,700-hour service term with funding for future education expenses or to apply to certain student loans. That benefit was worth about $7,300 this service year.

Funding for AmeriCorps and NCCC has long been scrutinized when Congress talks of budget trims. The federal agency’s budget showed NCCC funding amounted to nearly $38 million last fiscal year.

A White House official said the Trump administration questioned using taxpayer money for the program. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to comment publicly.

The traditional NCCC volunteers worked with sponsors including community and faith-based based organizations, nonprofits, schools, cities and tribes. Some of the recent service projects included working at a food bank in Washington state, building homes with Habitat for Humanity in North Carolina, and facilitating after school programs in Arizona.

AmeriCorps NCCC also has a partnership with the Federal Emergency Management Agency and, more recently, the U.S. Forest Service. Those volunteers over the last year responded to tornadoes and flooding in Iowa, hurricane damage in North Carolina and wildfires in California, among other natural disasters, when volunteers are especially visible.

Young corps members were told Tuesday night to pack up. Many started long road trips from their latest assignment to campuses in Vicksburg, Mississippi; Vinton, Iowa; Sacramento, California; and Aurora, Colorado. Members would receive their allowance and health coverage through the end of April, according to the memo.

Members were told in the memo that those who have completed 15% or more of their term would be eligible for a prorated amount of their education award.

But Kate Raftery, who was NCCC director from 2011 to 2014, said she’s worried about the corps members, many of whom were the “unusual suspects” who “saw this as a really impactful education or career launching pad.”

“They were not young people who had been striving to be service members somewhere,” Raftery said. “They were looking for an opportunity to improve their life. They were looking for an opportunity to build some skills, and to be part of a community.”

Yoon Gwan-shick/Yonhap via AP

Yoon Gwan-shick/Yonhap via AP

LOS ANGELES — Actor Steve Carell is sending Southern California high school students affected by the devasting wildfires in Los Angeles to the prom for free.

The “Office” actor and comedian said Tuesday in an Instagram video that he was working with the Alice’s Kids charity to pay for prom for seniors at six high schools in Pasadena.

“If you have already paid for your prom tickets, they will reimburse you for your prom tickets. It’s a pretty good deal,” Carell said.

The Los Angeles area fires destroyed more than 16,000 homes, businesses and other structures and killed at least 29 people in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood and Altadena area north of Pasadena. It also scorched school campuses, upending the lives of thousands of students and parents who were left scrambling looking for classrooms for their kids to go to.

Alice’s Kids will donate about $175,000 for more than 800 students to attend the annual right-of-passage dance for graduating students. Tickets typically range from $100 to $150 each.

“Going to prom should be a celebration, and we wanted to help make the big night just a little easier for seniors whose lives have been turned upside down by the wildfires,” Ron Fitzsimmons, executive director of Alice’s Kids, said in a statement. “Hopefully this allows the students to unwind and have some fun after a devasting year.”

An Instagram video posted by John Muir High School, one of the recipient schools, show students clapping and cheering as they were surprised with Carell’s announcement during a school assembly.

Another recipient includes Aveson Charter School, whose campus for kindergarten through 5th grade students burned down in the fires and building for sixth through 12th graders is damaged and unusable.

Carell also participated in the star-studded “Skate for LA Strong” hockey tournament last week to raise money for fire relief.

In closing, the actor said: “Have fun, enjoy the prom. And remember, this is Steve Carell.”

LOS ANGELES — Former Vice President Kamala Harris stepped on the NAACP Image Awards stage Saturday night with a sobering message, calling the civil rights organization a pillar of the Black community and urging people to stay resilient and hold onto their faith during the tenure of President Donald Trump.

“While we have no illusions about what we are up against in this chapter in our American story, this chapter will be written not simply by whoever occupies the oval office nor by the wealthiest among us,” Harris said after receiving the NAACP’s Chairman’s Award. “The American story will be written by you. Written by us. By we the people.”

The 56th annual Image Awards was held at the Pasadena Civic Auditorium in the Los Angeles area.

Harris, defeated by Trump in last year’s presidential election, was the first woman and the first person of color to serve as vice president. She had previously been a U.S. senator from California and the state’s attorney general.

In her first major public appearance since leaving office, Harris did not reference her election loss or Trump’s actions since entering the Oval Office, although Trump mocked her earlier in the day at the Conservative Political Action Conference.

Harris spoke about eternal vigilance, the price of liberty, staying alert, seeking the truth and America’s future.

“Some see the flames on our horizons, the rising waters in our cities, the shadows gathering over our democracy and ask ‘What do we do now?’” Harris said. “But we know exactly what to do, because we have done it before. And we will do it again. We use our power. We organize, mobilize. We educate. We advocate. Our power has never come from having an easy path.”

Other winners of the Chairman’s prize have included former President Barack Obama, the late Rep. John Lewis and the late actor Ruby Dee.

Harris was honored during the ceremony along with the Wayans family. The family was inducted into the NAACP Image Awards Hall of Fame in recognition of pioneering contributions to film, TV, sketch and stand-up comedy that have shaped Hollywood for decades.

Keenen Ivory Wayans, Damon Wayans Sr., Marlon Wayans, Shawn Wayans, Kim Wayans and Damon Wayans Jr. each were recognized.

Marlon Wayans, whose guest appearance on Peacock’s “Bel-Air” was up for an NAACP award, shared how Keenen Ivory Wayans sparked the family’s rise.

“He raised us all like Jedis,” he said. “We wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for our big brother.”

Marlon Wayans joked that when his brother told their mom he was leaving college for comedy, she said, ”Boy, I’ve known you your whole life, and you ain’t never said nothing funny. That’s the funniest thing you’ve said.”

The crowd erupted in laughter, a fitting tribute to a family that has kept audiences laughing for more than three decades.

The family has a long list of credits. Keenen Ivory Wayans created the sketch comedy series “In Living Color” in 1990 and directed the 2000 slasher spoof “Scary Movie,” which was written by Marlon Wayans and Shawn Wayans, who also wrote and starred in “White Chicks” in 2004. Damon Wayan’s had a starring role in the 1995 comedy “Major Payne,” and currently co-stars with son Damon Wayans Jr. in the CBS sitcom “Poppa’s House,” which was nominated for an NAACP Award. The pair also were nominated for their acting on the show.

Damon Wayans Jr. has acted in two of the most critically acclaimed comedies in recent years: “Happy Endings” and “New Girl.” Kim Wayans, a comedian, actor and director, also received praise for her work in the 2011 drama “Pariah.”

Keke Palmer expressed her surprise after her name was called as winner of the coveted entertainment of the year.

“Oh my gosh. Guys, I didn’t think I was going to win,” said Palmer, who paid homage to fellow nominee Cynthia Erivo’s Oscar-nominated performance in “Wicked.”

Palmer starred in the buddy comedy “One of Them Days,” which debuted No. 1 at the box office last month. She also won an Emmy for her hosting efforts on NBC’s “Password.”

“It’s such an amazing category to be in with all these people,” Palmer said. “It’s a beautiful night. It’s Black History Month, y’all. It’s so important we all come here together and celebrate one another with one another.”

Other nominees included Kendrick Lamar, Kevin Hart and Shannon Sharpe.

Image Awards host Deon Cole honored residents of the nearby Altadena neighborhood who were affected by January’s devastating Los Angeles-area wildfires.

A video of the fire devastation played before actor Morris Chestnut took the stage.

“Homes were lost, stores destroyed, countless lives shattered and over two dozens souls gone forever,” said Chestnut, a Los Angeles native who referenced impacted areas such as Altadena, the Pacific Palisades and Malibu.

“But what was not lost is the spirit of our community,” said Chestnut, who noted 22 Altadena residents attended the show on Saturday. Many in the audience stood and applauded.

Cole shifted tone and brightened the mood with a comedic prayer for Kanye West’s wife to find more clothes after her barely-there Grammys look and for Shannon Sharpe to finally size up his T-shirts.

The opening act was a lead-up to the evening’s first award: Queen Latifah as best actress in a drama series for her role in “The Equalizer.”

Dave Chappelle was honored with the President’s Award for his “thought-provoking humor.”

Accepting the award, Chappelle talked about the NAACP’s push against negative portrayals of Black people in media and the importance of representation.

“Every opportunity we get, we just keep chipping away at this monster of a machine,” he said.

Past recipients of the President’s Award include Jay-Z, Lauryn Hill, Usher, Rihanna and John Legend.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California Gov. Gavin Newsom has asked Congress to approve nearly $40 billion in aid to help the Los Angeles area recover from January’s devastating wildfires, which he said could become the costliest natural disaster in U.S. history.

Newsom sent a letter Friday asking for support from lawmakers including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.), the House Appropriations Committee chair.

“Los Angeles is one of the most economically productive places on the globe, but it can only rebound and flourish with support from the federal government as it recovers from this unprecedented disaster,” Newsom wrote.

Estimates of the total economic loss from the firestorm have been estimated to surpass $250 billion — with real estate losses from the Palisades and Eaton fires predicted to potentially top $30 billion, according to a Los Angeles Times analysis. More than 16,200 structures were destroyed as flames ripped through Pacific Palisades, Malibu, Pasadena and Altadena.

Newsom vowed that the funding would be used to rebuild homes, infrastructure, businesses, schools, churches and health care facilities, while supporting the needs of people affected by the devastation.

“Make no mistake, Los Angeles will use this money wisely,” Newsom wrote.

His largest request is for an additional $16.8 billion from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, mostly intended for the rebuilding of property and infrastructure, with $5 billion earmarked for debris cleanup.

Newsom also asked for $9.9 billion from the Department of Housing and Urban Development for grants to fire victims, homeowners, businesses and renters, as well as $5.29 billion from the Small Business Administration for homeowner and business loans.

Newsom thanked President Donald Trump for support for fast-tracking debris removal. The letter did not mention recent threats by the Trump administration that federal aid could come with strings attached.

“We are eternally grateful,” Newsom said.

Trump has been a frequent critic of Newsom and California’s water policies. Ric Grenell, a Trump ally serving as his envoy for special missions, said Friday that “there will be conditions” to any federal aid for the state.

He said one of the possible conditions being discussed was defunding the California Coastal Commission, which regulates coastal development and protects public beach access. Trump has criticized the agency as overly restrictive, bureaucratic and a hindrance to timely rebuilding efforts.

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed laws Friday setting aside $50 million to help the state protect its policies from challenges by the Trump administration and defend immigrants amid the president’s mass-deportation plans.

One of the laws allocates $25 million for the state Department of Justice to fight legal battles against the federal government, and another sets aside $25 million in part for legal groups to defend immigrants facing possible deportation. During his first presidency, Trump sparred with California over climate laws, water policy, immigrant rights and more, and the state filed or joined more than 100 legal actions against the administration. The same fights are reemerging in the early days of Trump’s second term.

“Californians are being threatened by an out-of-control administration that doesn’t care about the Constitution and thinks there are no limits to its power,” said Democratic Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas, in a statement earlier this week. “That is why we are delivering legislation that will allocate resources to defend Californians from this urgent threat.”

The move comes a day after the Democratic governor returned from Washington, where he met with Trump and members of Congress to try to secure federal disaster aid for the devastating Los Angeles-area wildfires that ripped through neighborhoods in January, killing more than two dozen people.

Newsom signed a $2.5 billion package for fire relief into law last month to help fund the state’s disaster response including evacuations, sheltering survivors and removing household hazardous waste. His administration has said they expect the federal government to reimburse the state.

Republican lawmakers have criticized the funding for lawsuits, saying the focus on Trump is distracting as the Los Angeles area recovers from the fires.

“This slush fund isn’t about solving any real problems — it’s a political stunt designed to distract from the urgent issues our state faces and it won’t bode well for fire victims,” Republican Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones said in a statement earlier this week.

Critics have also said the legislation doesn’t ensure that funding wouldn’t be used to defend immigrants without legal status who have been convicted of serious felonies.

After signing the funding into law, Newsom said the money wasn’t intended to be used for that purpose, and he encouraged lawmakers to pass subsequent legislation if clarifying that is needed. He said in a statement that the funding will assist legal groups in “safeguarding the civil rights of California’s most vulnerable residents.”

Newsom announced the plan to safeguard the state’s policies days after Trump’s election in November. He convened the Legislature in a special session to pass the bills.

The state is used to taking the federal government to court over Trump actions.

California sued the Republican president’s administration more than 120 times during his first term, according to the attorney general’s office. The state spent about $42 million overall on legal battles against the federal government, ranging from around $2 million to nearly $13 million a year.

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Austin is a corps member for the Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Austin on X: @ sophieadanna

Efforts by the U.S. Forest Service to fight wildfires in California shouldn’t be influenced by politics, President Donald Trump’s nominee to head the U.S. Department of Agriculture said Thursday at her Senate confirmation hearing.

Responding to questions from a Senate panel, nominee Brooke Rollins also acknowledged that Trump’s plans for mass deportations and tariffs could create hardships for the agriculture industry, but she said his election demonstrated that the public supports such actions.

Trump nominated Rollins, who also served in his first administration, to lead a sprawling agency that oversees farming, forestry, ranching, food quality and nutrition. If confirmed as agriculture secretary, Rollins would take charge of the agency at a time when many farmers have seen their profits plunge and when the Forest Service is joining efforts to fight a wave of wildfires in Southern California.

Given that Trump has threatened to withhold federal disaster aid from Los Angeles unless California officials change how the state manages its water resources, California Sen. Adam Schiff asked Rollins if she would commit to equal treatment from the Forest Service.

“Are you committed to employing the same emergency resources to fight wildfires in blue states as would be deployed to fight wildfires in red states?” Schiff asked.

Rollins responded that she would not support discrimination against any state.

“Obviously, but it bears saying since you asked, 100% yes,” Rollins said. “To watch the devastation in your beautiful state has been heartbreaking for all of us, no matter if we’re from red states or blue states.”

Rollins, 52, is a lawyer from Texas who served as domestic policy chief during Trump’s first term and is now the president and CEO of the American First Policy Institute, which has helped map out plans for the second Trump administration. She graduated from Texas A&M with an undergraduate degree in agricultural development and then earned her law degree at the University of Texas.

Schiff and other Democrats on the Senate Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee also asked Rollins about Trump’s plans for mass deportations of people in the country illegally. They noted that a high percentage of those who harvest produce and work at dairies could be abruptly deported, causing a giant labor shortage.

Rollins said she supported Trump’s agenda but acknowledged it could be difficult for U.S. farmers.

“The president’s vision of a secure border and a mass deportation at a scale that matters is something I support,” Rollins said.

Even as she supported the president’s planned actions, Rollins said she would support efforts to recruit more workers, such as making temporary immigrant farm worker programs more effective.

“That is my commitment, is to help President Trump deploy his agenda in an effective way while at the same time defending, if confirmed as secretary of agriculture, our farmers and ranchers across this country,” she said.

Republicans as well as Democrats raised the issue of tariffs, which Trump says he will impose to encourage foreign investors to bring manufacturing to the U.S. and to force other countries to make policy changes.

Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet, a Democrat, said farmers and ranchers see little prospect for improving their economic condition other than expanding exports. Bennet implored Rollins to make the case to Trump that higher tariffs would devastate efforts to increase exports.

Rollins said she would always speak up for the needs of farmers and ranchers.

“My role is to defend, to honor, to elevate our entire agriculture community in the Oval Office around the table, through the interagency process and to ensure that every decision that is made in the coming four years has that front of mind as those decisions are being made,” Rollins said.

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FILE – Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) is honored for being first MLB player to achieve 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season during the first inning of a baseball game against the Colorado Rockies in Los Angeles, Friday, Sept. 20, 2024. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis, File)

HONOLULU — Hawaii lawmakers began a new legislative session Wednesday with a vow to try to stabilize the state’s property insurance market as hurricanes, wildfires and other climate change-influenced disasters at home and elsewhere prompt insurance carriers to raise rates.

Hurricanes in Florida and North Carolina and wildfires in California affect the insurance business in Hawaii because insurance companies buy reinsurance — insurance for themselves — on the global market. As reinsurance rates rise in response to these disasters, some insurers want to charge more in Hawaii or stop providing insurance in the islands.

Insurance companies had increasingly been viewing Hawaii as a disaster risk state even before the August 2023 wildfires on Maui, but that event only intensified the trend, Senate President Ron Kouchi told reporters at a news conference.

The emergence of multiple large wildfires that have destroyed thousands of structures in and around Los Angeles over the past week have made matters worse. A preliminary estimate last week by AccuWeather, a private company that provides data on weather and its impact, put damage and economic losses from the fires between $135 billion and $150 billion, likely the costliest in U.S. history.

The current situation is “incredibly complicated and dynamic,” said state Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole, chair of the Senate Commerce and Consumer Protection Committee.

“We don’t have any certainty, for example, on what the fires in Los Angeles are going to cause in the insurance market, in part because the fires are not even extinguished yet,” he said.

“It’s unclear at this point whether we’re at the bottom or things could get worse,” the Democrat said. “What we can expect is that these larger and larger scale disasters are going to continue to increase in frequency, and we need to be prepared for it.”

Senate Democrats will propose restarting programs started after Hurricane Iniki hit Kauai in 1992 and upended property insurance for years after. At the time, the state created a fund to provide hurricane insurance to residents.

The Hawaii Hurricane Relief Fund created after Iniki provided hurricane coverage to 155,000 policyholders statewide for a decade until private insurers returned to the market. The state paid for the fund through policyholder premiums, assessments on licensed property and casualty insurers, a special mortgage recording fee and a surcharge on premiums on policies issued by licensed property and casualty insurers.

The state authorized the director of finance to issue bonds to help the fund operate, but they were never issued.

Keohokalole said the state has limited resources and he couldn’t guarantee that such a program would lead to prices that homeowners are accustomed to. It’s important for Hawaii homeowners to be able to buy insurance locally, he said.

“We can’t expect kupuna on fixed incomes or families that are struggling right now to be able to pay whatever the market dictates globally, when Hawaii is a tsunami risk state, a wildfire risk state and a hurricane risk state,” he said, using the Hawaiian word for elders.

Longer term, he said lawmakers would need to discuss resiliency and fire safety measures homeowners can adopt so they’ll be better able to withstand disasters.

Hawaii condominium owners have been hit particularly hard by insurance market instability.

Testifiers before the Legislature last year said condo boards were increasingly choosing to reduce the amount of their insurance coverage because they couldn’t afford higher premiums. But Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, which buy home loans from banks and other lenders, will only buy mortgages for units in buildings insured up to full replacement value. This makes banks unwilling to lend money to buyers of these condos.

One testifier said between 375 to 390 condominium buildings in Hawaii were underinsured for hurricane risk.

Keohokalole said it was imperative that lawmakers “deliver something” this session, which ends in May.

Kouchi, also a Democrat, noted that without insurance people wouldn’t be able to get a mortgage and would have to pay cash to buy a home. He said this would be a “tremendous impediment” to homeownership in a state where the median price of a single-family home is over $1 million in most counties.

The Los Angeles wildfires are also testing California’s insurance market, where major insurers have pulled back on property coverage as climate change makes wildfires, floods and windstorms more common and damaging.