President Joe Biden wants to set aside more funding for high-needs schools and students with disabilities and make preschool available to 4-year-olds free next school year.
Biden releases 2025 budget proposal On March 11, it requested $82 billion from the U.S. Department of Education.
The budget announcement comes days after Biden's State of the Union address, in which he called for higher pay for teachers and expanded access to preschool, tutoring, summer learning, and career and technical education. .
A budget document puts many of these priorities on paper. With Republicans controlling one chamber of Congress and proposing domestic spending cuts, there is virtually no chance that the proposal will go into effect as proposed, but Biden's budget remains a priority for Biden as he seeks re-election in November. It shows.
The budget proposal proposes $3.9 billion more than the Department of Education's 2023 budget and $2.8 billion more than projected spending in 2024, before Congress passes a final budget.
In past years, Mr. Biden's budget proposals have included requests for much larger increases in education funding than this year's request. The 2024 proposal called for a $10.8 billion increase in education funding through 2023. The 2023 proposal called for a $15.3 billion increase..
The small increase proposed this year comes from the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023, which allowed Congress to avoid last spring's government shutdown by suspending the debt ceiling through fiscal years 2024 and 2025. It is. The act imposed a nearly $711 billion cap on the Fiscal Responsibility Act. Non-defense spending for fiscal year 2025 beginning October 1, 2024.
Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said in a press conference with reporters on Monday that the proposed budget is within those caps, stressing that people need to view this year's proposals in context. Last year, U.S. House Republicans proposed a budget that would cut funding to Title I schools by 80 percent, and former President Donald Trump proposed cuts to education spending every year of his term.
“Despite this year's Fiscal Responsibility Act caps, this budget, while building on the current administration's best budget, still rivals the best Obama-era budget and blows away Trump's budget.” Cardona said. “There's a big difference between lifting a bar from the ground and lifting it from a rooftop.”
Suggested support for students and schools in need
Although the federal government spends much less on public education than state and local governments, it is an important source of funding for schools and special education, especially in low-income areas.
As in past years, the budget proposal calls for more funding for Title I programs that fund academic programs in schools in low-income areas. The budget proposes $18.6 billion for the program, an increase of $200 million over 2023.
If passed, the administration's total increase in Title I funding for 2021 and beyond would be $2.1 billion.Biden had proposed tripling Title I funding. He has not yet reached his proposed goal of more than $45 billion when running for president.
The administration wants to further support high-need schools by proposing $8 billion in funding to states to provide academic improvement and achievement grants to schools. Schools will use the funding to support efforts to increase attendance, provide high-quality tutoring and student support, and expand learning time, according to the budget proposal.
Additionally, the budget proposes a $12 billion College Cost Reduction Fund, the bulk of which, $7 billion, would expand high school students' access to free dual-enrollment courses that offer both high school and high school. The proceeds will be used to fund a grant to the state Department of Education. University course credit. The remaining $5 billion will go toward grants to universities to develop evidence-based strategies to reduce college costs and improve college graduation rates.
The budget proposal also includes $14.4 billion in state aid for the Americans with Educational Disabilities Act, an increase of $200 million over the level enacted in 2023. The proposal includes $125 million in grants to cover staffing costs for special education and early intervention in schools, one of the most difficult roles for school districts to fill. The payroll grant proposal is a $10 million increase over the 2023 budget.
Even with the increased spending under IDEA, the budget still falls short of meeting Congress's promise to cover 40 percent of the excess costs of educating special education children when it passed IDEA in the 1970s. It probably won't reach you. The federal government has never fulfilled that promise.
The President also proposed a $50 million increase to the department's Full-Service Community School Grant Program, bringing the total to $200 million. The program provides funding to help schools provide comprehensive services to students and families, including medical and dental care, financial literacy classes, and housing assistance.
The budget proposes $5 billion by 2025 and $200 billion over the next 10 years to ensure universal free preschool access for 4-year-olds through state-federal partnerships. ing. Parents will be able to choose the settings. Biden's budget proposals for the past several years have included similar proposals, giving states the option to expand preschool to 3-year-olds once all 4-year-olds have access to it. It will be given to you.
The budget also includes a $544 million increase in Head Start funding to increase teacher pay. New rules proposed by the Biden administration aim to raise Head Start teacher salaries over the next few years, bringing them closer to those of K-12 teachers. The program, which serves low-income children, is experiencing the highest teacher turnover rate in 20 years, limiting the number of children it can serve.
Other priorities in the budget proposal include:
- $1.5 billion will be spent on Perkins career and technical education programs, an increase of $40 million over 2023 spending.
- Dedicates $216 million to school mental health programs to increase the number of school-based counselors, psychologists, social workers, and other mental health professionals in K-12 schools.
- $215 million in teacher preparation grants, including $90 million in the Effective Educator Development Support Grant, a competitive professional development program; $95 million for the Teacher Quality Partnership Program to support colleges of education. and $30 million for the Hawkins Center of Excellence Program, which supports teacher education at historically Black colleges and universities and other minority-serving institutions.
- $173 million to the Teacher and School Leaders Incentive Fund to support educator recruitment and retention.
- $940 million to support multilingual learners through Title III English language acquisition programs. This is an increase of $50 million starting in 2023.
- $72 million to help schools hire bilingual teachers and provide professional development on multilingual education.
- $15 billion over 10 years to allow more states and schools to participate in the Community Eligibility Provision, a U.S. Department of Agriculture program that allows low-income schools to provide free meals to all students. cast.
Budget received praise from teachers' unions but condemned by Republicans in Congress
As expected, Biden's budget proposal drew praise from teachers' union leaders but criticism from congressional Republicans.
Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, said in a statement Monday that the president's budget will give students access to public schools “where they can develop and develop to their fullest potential.”
“President Joe Biden's budget shows that he values the voices of parents and educators, and that his vision for this country is inclusive of Black and white, Indigenous, newcomer, and Latino communities. [Asian American and Pacific Islander]That’s always a top priority,” Weingarten said.
Rep. Virginia Foxx, chair of the House Education and Labor Committee, said in a statement that the president's budget plan “would drive the nation further into unsustainable and irresponsible debt.” .
Specifically, North Carolina Republican lawmakers objected to Biden's higher education proposals, including proposals to create a free community college option and increase the amount of Pell Grants, as well as the expansion of community eligibility provisions. .
