Skip to content
News and updates

Category: Administration

Dept. of Education Budget Request Released

Posted on

The Trump administration has released its budget request for the Department of Education for Fiscal Year 2026, proposing steep funding cuts of more than 15%—a $12 billion reduction in budget authority. The administration characterizes these cuts as part of a broader effort to “responsibly wind down” the department.

While the president’s budget request serves as an important policy statement, it carries no legal authority. Final funding decisions rest with Congress, which determines allocations through the annual appropriations process. Several key Congressional committees are set to begin deliberations in the coming weeks, shaping the future of federal education spending.

Included below are some of the key higher education policy changes proposed in the budget request:

  • Pell Grant Reduction: The maximum Pell Grant award would be cut by $1,685, reducing it to $5,710 in total. The administration argues that this is necessary to address a $2.7 billion shortfall that has resulted from increasing instances of fraud as well as congressional irresponsibility.
  • Elimination of TRIO Programs: Federal funding for TRIO programs would be ended entirely. The administration argues that programs to support students from disadvantaged backgrounds will be better administered by individual states.
  • Cuts to Federal Work-Study: The administration requests to cut funding for work-study programs by $980 million. The administration hopes these proposed cuts will help to “enact a more appropriate split between Federal and employer wage subsidy, where employers pay 75 percent of a student’s hourly wages and reduce the federal contribution to 25 percent.”
  • Defunding GEAR UP: The GEAR UP program would also be defunded under this proposal.

GOP Tax Package Advances Out of Committee

Posted on

Early Wednesday morning, after more than 17 hours of debate, the House Ways and Means Committee voted to advance out of committee the legislative package containing a slew of President Trump’s top tax priorities. The panel advanced the legislation in a 26-19 party-line vote after rejecting numerous Democratic-led amendments.

The tax bill now heads to the House Budget Committee, which is tasked with combining all the portions of the Trump agenda bill into one package in advance of its consideration in the entire chamber.

The 389-page package makes the income tax rates from the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 permanent and implements some of the president’s campaign promises, including no tax on tips or overtime through 2028 and a temporary increase of the child tax credit.

This bill also includes the Republican proposal to increase the endowment tax on some universities. Under the 2017 law, private universities with endowments of over $500,000 per student were subject to a 1.4% tax. The current GOP package creates a tiered excise tax system that would significantly increase taxes on some universities:

  • 1.4% tax for schools with endowments between $500,000 and $750,000 per student.
  • 7% tax for schools with endowments between $750,000 and $1.25 million per student.
  • 14% tax for schools with endowments between $1.25 million and $2 million per student.
  • 21% tax for schools with endowments above $2 million per student.

The bill also narrows the definition of students counted for tax calculations. International students on temporary visas and undocumented students will be excluded from the count, increasing the tax burden on institutions with large international student populations.

Crucially, the endowment tax would still only apply to private universities, although some religiously affiliated institutions will be exempt.

While voting the package out of committee is a significant step, there remains a strenuous process ahead of GOP leadership as they seek passage of the reconciliation legislation. The Ways and Means portion must be packaged together into one “big, beautiful bill” by the House Budget Committee before being voted on by the entire House, which will be difficult given concerns from different GOP factions and the razor-thin margin in the House. If the bill does manage to pass, it will be subject to potentially significant changes in the Senate, where it will also face staunch Democratic opposition.

Helpful links:

The Hill

Inside Higher Ed

 

 

HHS Budget Hearing

Posted on

The Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies will meet in open session at 10:00 AM on Tuesday, May 20, 2025, in Room 124 of the Dirksen Senate Office Building.

The Subcommittee will hold a hearing titled: A Review of the President’s Fiscal Year 2026 Budget Request for the Department of Health and Human Services. Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will be the witness. Live video webcast of the hearing can be found here:  www.appropriations.senate.gov.

 

 

 

HHS Changes Under RFK

Posted on

The Health and Human Services Department announced a sweeping plan to cut 10,000 jobs and consolidate control over its sub-agencies on Thursday. FDA drug, medical device, or food reviewers and inspectors will not be among those fired, according to an HHS fact sheet. Instead, the cuts will target employees working on policy, human resources, information technology, procurement, and communications. The administration will start sending notices to employees on Friday, with the terminations coming into effect on May 27.

Around 3,500 employees are on the chopping block at the Food and Drug Administration, though they don’t yet know who they are.

The cuts come as Elon Musk and DOGE continue to trim the federal workforce and also represent HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s goal to exert more control over the sub-agencies contained within the department.

Kennedy has framed the cuts as a way to unite all the agencies around his efforts to “make America healthy again.”

This is not the administration’s first attempt to shrink HHS. In February, Musk laid off thousands of probationary workers. After pushback from the device industry, the administration rehired some FDA reviewers a week later. A federal judge has since paused all the probationary layoffs.

 

Bhattacharya Confirmed as NIH Director

Posted on

On March 25, the Senate voted 53-47, along party lines, to confirm Jayanta Bhattacharya, M.D., PhD to be Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Following the vote, Senator Bill Cassidy, M.D. (R-La.), Chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, issued a statement saying “The NIH needs a leader that will restore Americans’ trust in public health institutions and find unbiased solutions to Americans’ most challenging health problems,” and “Dr. Bhattacharya is ready to take on this responsibility and implement President Trump’s vision to Make America Healthy Again.”