(NewsNation) — Education Secretary Linda McMahon testified on Tuesday before a Senate subcommittee about the Trump administration’s budget proposal and its effects on her department.
President Donald Trump’s 2026 budget request includes a 15% funding cut to the department. It allocates $66.7 billion to education, a $12 million drop from the previous year’s discretionary budget authority.
The funding changes include a $1,000 slash to maximum Pell Grant rewards, a 35% funding cut for the Office of Civil Rights and reductions to other student aid plans.
The School Superintendents Association has criticized the plan: “The Administration preserved funding for priority programs such as IDEA and Title I in the proposal, but eliminated other crucial education funding, under the guise of efficiency.”
When nominated and confirmed to her position, Trump tasked McMahon with putting herself out of a job as the administration works to shutter the Education Department altogether.
In a March interview with NewsNation, McMahon said the department’s end is not a “turn off the lights and walk out of the department. It’s with close consultation with Congress and looking how the needs of students can best be serviced.”