In a televised ceremony late Thursday afternoon, President Trump signed an executive order which he said starts the process of dismantling the U.S. Department of Education (ED).
The order instructs the Secretary of Education “to the maximum extent appropriate and permitted by law, take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Department of Education and return authority over education to the States and local communities.” Additionally, ED is instructed to ensure “rigorous compliance” with law and policy, including the requirement that any grant recipient end diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs or those “promoting gender ideology.”
In a statement issued yesterday evening, Secretary of Education Linda McMahon praised the order, calling it a “history-making action… to free future generations of Americans.” Though she promised continued funding for programs including student loans and special education, McMahon argued that “[e]ducation is fundamentally a state responsibility. Instead of filtering resources through layers of federal red tape, we will empower states to take charge and advocate for and implement what is best for students, families, and educators in their communities.”
While the instructions in the order are sweeping, the Secretary’s actual authority is significantly more limited. Many offices within ED are required to be in place under the Department of Education Organization Act and subsequent laws, and ED is required to perform a number of additional functions like reporting on the results of federal education programs to Congress. Eliminating those functions or those offices would require an act of Congress, and polling shows such a move would be broadly unpopular. Still, Senator Bill Cassidy (R-LA), the Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said in a statement on social media yesterday that he would introduce legislation to eliminate the agency “as soon as possible.”
Both lawmakers and the President, meanwhile, have highlighted activities they do want ED to perform – including investigations of potential civil rights violations under Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 and Title VI of the Civil Rights Act. Additionally, although the White House stated yesterday that student loans would continue to be administered by ED, the President told reporters in the Oval Office on Friday that he plans to shift the federal student loan portfolio to the Small Business Administration.
The text of the executive order is available here.
