On June 3, 2025, the US Education Minister Linda McMahon testifies to a hearing from the subcommittee for labor, health and human services, education and related agencies of the US Senate (Screenshot from the Livestream Committee)
Washington-Die US senators of both parties urged the Minister of Education Linda McMahon on Tuesday because of the proposal of the Trump government to eliminate the financing for vital programs by the educational department for disadvantaged and low-income students.
McMahon defended these and other comprehensive changes that were set out in President Donald Trumps Fiscal year 2026 budget request – This requires expenses of 12 billion US dollars in the department – while you testify to the President’s proposal before the sub -committee for work appropriation of the US Senate for Labor, Health and Human Services.
The hearing on Tuesday followed the Certificate of the education secretary In front of the corresponding house disc in May. The committees of the House of Representatives and the Senate share the responsibility for the draft law in order to finance the department for the coming financial year.
McMahon said that the budget request takes a “considerable step” to her and Trump’s goal of “eliminating the German bureaucracy, reducing waste and returning the states, parents and educators”.
Senators blow up the move to eliminate programs
But the budget’s proposal to eliminate the Federal Trio programs, which in the 2024 financial year with almost 1.2 billion US Stir upwhich were financed with 388 million US dollars, criticized both Republicans and Democrats in the panel.
While the Federal Trio programs Add programs for public relations and student services to support students who come for disadvantaged backgrounds. Stir up The aim is to prepare students with low income for college.
Neither Trio nor Gear Up have “fulfilled most of its performance measures for several years”, and states and places are “best suited” to determine how the activities in the programs and not the federal government can be supported, according to the Summary the more detailed budget request from the department.
Senator Susan Collins, chairman of the more comprehensive committee for the funds of the Senate, said that with the proposal of the budget to shorten the trio programs, “strongly” did not agree.
The Maine Republican, the chairman of the chairpersons Congress Trio CaucusSaid that she saw “the life of countless first generation students and weak students, not only in Maine, but in the whole country, which are often due to obstacles to access to college training that was changed by the trio program.”
Senator Shelley Moore Capito, chairman of the subcommittee, reflected Collins’ concerns about cutting and equipment and encouraged her body to re -evaluate these parts of the budget request.
The Republican of West Virginia said: “My state and many of our states, especially mine, I think, I think many first college guests, many students who neither have the emerging goals in their family don’t see how they have education or a certificate or a certificate or whatever, and here I think that these programs were particularly useful.”
McMahon said that although she “absolutely” agreed that there is a certain effectiveness in the trio programs, “these programs have been negotiated in very difficult conditions, since the Ministry of Education is unable to consider the accountability of trio programs”.
“It particularly eliminates our ability to do this, and I only think that we cannot see the effectiveness across the board that we would normally see with our federal expenses,” she said.
Senator Jeff Merkley shot back on McMahon’s claim and found that there are benchmarks set and annual performance reports for scholarship holders.
“Just let me tell your argument that there are no studies, no accountability, is simply wrong, and the fact that you come here if you have not even viewed the study of these programs in your own department to be informed about it is deeply worrying,” said the Oregon Democrat.
Education department “responsibly down”
The white house Published recent details On the proposed budget last week and according to A SummaryThe reduction in expenses of $ 12 billion “reflects an agency that wanes responsibly.”
The more detailed request includes lowering almost $ 1,700 from the maximum amount that a student can receive annually through the Pell Grant-a state subsidy that helps students with low income to pay for college.
The budget proposal also requires the consolidation of 18 grant programs for K-12 training and the replacement of a 2-billion dollar formula grant that would give the states flexibility. The document asks for an augment of $ 60 million to expand the number of charter schools in the country.
The proposal came when Trump tried to dramatically redefine the federal role in education.
The administration was slacken up to his educational agenda in May after a federal judge in Massachusetts had instructed the educational department to restore them more than 1,300 employees which were gutted by a reduction in the effort.
The judge also blocked the agency from the implementation Trump’s executive order McMahon asks to facilitate the closure of her own department, and the department prevented it from carrying out Directive of the President Transfer of the student loan sports folio and the special debt from the agency.
