Senator Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) has introduced legislation to eliminate the Department of Education, following President-elect Donald Trump’s campaign promise to shift education oversight back to the states. The proposed measure, titled the Returning Education to Our States Act, was unveiled Thursday in the Senate and outlines a plan to redistribute the Department’s programs to other federal agencies.
During his campaign, Trump declared, “One thing I’ll be doing very early in the administration is closing up the Department of Education in Washington, D.C., and sending all education work it needs back to the states.” While some experts questioned the feasibility of such a move without congressional approval, a Republican majority in Congress may provide the necessary support.
Senator Rounds shared his perspective on the matter:
“The federal Department of Education has never educated a single student, and it’s long past time to end this bureaucratic Department that causes more harm than good,” he said in a statement. “Local control is best when it comes to education. Local school boards and state Departments of Education know what their students need far better than unelected bureaucrats in Washington, D.C.”
Rounds’ plan proposes reassigning federal education programs to departments where he believes they align more logically:
- Native American education programs would move to the Department of Interior.
- Student loans and grants would transfer to the Department of Treasury.
- Disability-related programs would fall under the Department of Health and Human Services.
- Career education programs would shift to the Department of Labor.
- The Fulbright-Hays Program, which supports international research and training, would become the responsibility of the State Department.
“I’m excited to work with President-elect Trump and our Republican majorities to make this vision a reality,” Rounds added.
The announcement comes shortly after Trump tapped Linda McMahon, former WWE CEO and former head of the Small Business Administration, to serve as Secretary of Education.
“It is my great honor to announce that Linda McMahon will be the United States Secretary of Education,” Trump said earlier this week.
With Trump’s education agenda and Rounds’ legislative push, Republicans are gearing up for a significant shift in how education is governed in the U.S. The proposal has already sparked debate over the balance of federal and state roles in education policy.
