Organizations and state leaders praised the Trump Administration’s efforts to break up the federal education bureaucracy to cut through red tape, ensure efficient delivery of services, and empower local leaders to prioritize students, according to a July 30 statement from the U.S. Department of Education.
Governor of Iowa Kim Reynolds said, “Iowa was first in the nation to receive a waiver returning education to the states. President Trump and @usedgov understand that education reform is only possible when states direct federal funds where they’ll have the greatest impact for students. S.5046 would undermine further reform—the Senate HELP Committee should vote it down.”
The American Resolve Institute said, “No federal bureaucrat in DC educates your kids. Parents do. Teachers do. States do. @EDSecMcMahon is sending education decisions back to the people who actually know your kids. There’s no good reason for Congress to stand in the way.”
Parents Defending Education stated, “Over the last two years, the Trump administration has prudently used interagency agreements to transfer U.S. Department of Education offices and functions to other federal agencies. These transfers have had two positive effects. First, they have reduced the bureaucratic bloat at the U.S. Department of Education, fulfilling President Trump’s promise to reduce the footprint of our nation’s most historically unproductive cabinet department. Second, these interagency agreements transfer essential functions to federal agencies whose mission and resources are better aligned to fulfilling the responsibilities required by law. The U.S. Department of Education does not educate a single child. It is an administrative agency designed to carry out limited functions prescribed by Congress and the president. Secretary of Education Linda McMahon should remain free to collaborate with her fellow cabinet appointees and institute new and better ways to serve the American people. S. 5046 would stifle innovation and maintain the bureaucratic status quo at the U.S. Department of Education.”
Adam Kissel, Visiting Fellow in the Center for Education Policy at The Heritage Foundation writing for The Daily Signal, said, “Dismantling the U.S. Department of Education is one of the Trump administration’s best and boldest policies. With just a small percentage of staff coming to the office anymore, the agency is downsizing to a nearby building. Some senators are trying to stop much of this welcome reform, however, with a bill to cease implementation of any interagency agreement in K–12 and higher education, special education, and Indian Education.”
The Pelican Institute commented: “For decades, one Washington bureaucracy sat between every education decision and the classroom. Not anymore. The U.S. Dept. of Education is shifting real functions—civil rights to DOJ, special ed to HHS—to agencies built to run them. Congress shouldn’t stand in the way to protect the status quo. Instead, it should finish the job and make these transfers permanent. #EdFreedom”