BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS – NOVEMBER 19: U.S. President-elect Donald Trump attends a viewing of the launch … [+]
A Republican senator has introduced a bill to eliminate the Department of Education, which was one of President Donald Trump’s campaign promises.
The bill aims to end the Department of Education, and redistribute federal programs to other existing departments. But the biggest change would be allocating K-12 education money directly to the states via block grants.
The bill, Returning Education to Our States Act, was introduced by Senator Mike Rounds of South Dakota. In a press release, he said “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.”
However, it was also noted that there are several important programs housed within the Department of Education, and the goal is to move them to other areas of government.
Changes If The Department Of Education Is Eliminated
The bill proposes moving key programs to different areas. According to the bill, here’s where the programs would move:
Department of the Treasury
- Student Loan Programs (Direct Loan, FFEL Loan, and Perkins Loan Programs)
- Federal Pell Grant Program
- Health Education Assistance Loan Program
- Education Sciences And Data
Health and Human Services
- Special Education Grants
- Services for Individuals With Disability In Education
- American Printing House For the Blind
- Helen Keller National Center for DeafBlind Youths and Adults
Department of Labor
- Career, Technical, and Adult Education Programs
- Vocational Rehabilitation Programs
Department of State
Department of the Interior
- Native American-Serving Programs
- Tribal Controlled Education Programs
For the remaining K-12 funds, the money would be distributed by the Department of the Treasury to the states via block grants.
Impact To Student Loan Borrowers
It’s important to note that these changes do not directly have an impact on borrowers in any way. By simply moving the existing programs to another department (in this case, Treasury), none of the rules governing student loans change.
In fact, it’s likely that (at least in the short term) no loan servicers will change and student loans will operate in the current status quo.
Borrowers would still need to make their student loan payments, student loan repayment plans that were created by law will still be available, and loan forgiveness programs like Public Service Loan Forgiveness will still happen.
It would take future actions by Congress to change these existing programs, whether or not the Department of Education exists as an entity.
What Should Borrowers Do?
While the uncertainty surrounding student loans can be unnerving, especially as you’re trying to plan for the future, borrowers with existing loans should make their plans based on the information available today — not hypothetical future legislation.
Even if changes were to happen to the Department of Education, it would take time — potentially years. And as the legislation stands today, the existing student loan programs will remain as they are.