Trump Administration Continues Illegal Effort to Dismantle Department of Education
WASHINGTON – Today, House Appropriations Committee Ranking Member Rosa DeLauro (D-CT-03) issued a statement after news broke that the Trump administration was taking yet another illegal step in their broader illegal effort to dismantle the Department of Education. The recent move removes special education and civil rights programs from the Department of Education and puts them in other agencies.
“This is a disgraceful violation of the law. Earlier this year, when we passed legislation funding the Department of Education, Congress made it unequivocally clear that the administration has no authority to strip programs and functions from the Department of Education without an act of Congress. Yet again, this administration is usurping the power of the purse while the Republican majority stands idly by, forfeiting their authority as a co-equal branch of government.
“By moving special education from the Department of Education to the Department of Health and Human Services, the administration is taking us back to a dark period in American history. One where individuals with disabilities were viewed not as whole persons deserving of an education, but as medical patients whose education is not a priority.
“Removing civil rights functions from the Department of Education to the Department of Justice will enable the Trump administration to further abuse this process to target students. Under President Trump’s former personal attorney Todd Blanche, these civil rights functions will continue to be weaponized against students and schools who do not conform to this administration’s extremist ideology.
“These illegal changes are designed to dismantle the Department of Education piece by piece. It is another step on the road to eliminating public education entirely, which I believe is the ultimate goal of this administration.”
The language discussing the Department's lack of authority to transfer its programs and functions can be found on page 83 of the Joint Explanatory Statement for the fiscal year 2026 Labor, Health and Human Services, Education and Related Agencies funding bill, which was enacted earlier this year.
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