Executive Order Issued Calling for the Dissolution of the Department of Education

03.24.2025

On Thursday, March 20, 2025, President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order aimed at shutting down the United States Department of Education (“USDOE”). Following recent attempts to minimize and scale back the USDOE through other actions, including the closure of seven regional Office for Civil Rights (“OCR”) locations in addition to other layoffs, this Executive Order directs USDOE Secretary Linda McMahon (“Secretary McMahon”) to take steps to facilitate the closure of the USDOE and return educational oversight to the States.

Executive Order “Improving Education Outcomes by Empowering Parents, States, and Communities” Calls for the Dissolution of the USDOE

The Executive Order directs Secretary McMahon “to the maximum extent appropriate and permitted by law, take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Department of Education and return authority over education to the States and local communities while ensuring the effective and uninterrupted delivery of services, programs, and benefits on which Americans rely.”

While the Executive Order calls on Secretary McMahon to facilitate the closure of the USDOE, it does not seek to abolish the main functions of the USDOE (e.g., the administration and enforcement of Title I, federal civil rights laws, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (“IDEA”), and federal student loans). After the Executive Order was signed, Secretary McMahon issued a press release regarding the Executive Order. Secretary McMahon stated, “Closing the Department does not mean cutting off funds from those who depend on them – we will continue to support K-12 students, students with special needs, college student borrowers, and others who rely on essential programs.” Additionally, White House Press Secretary, Karoline Leavitt stated the USDOE’s “critical functions” would continue, including the enforcement of civil rights laws and oversight of student loans and Pell Grants. Neither the Executive Order, nor Secretary McMahon, clarified where these critical functions or programs will be housed.

The Executive Order calls for the USDOE’s “bank functions,” specifically administering federal student loans, to be returned “to an entity equipped to serve America’s students,” and declares that the USDOE’s main functions “can, and should” be returned to the states. On Friday, March 21, President Trump announced that student loan administration functions would be transferred to the Small Business Association. He also indicated that programs for students with special needs would be transferred to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (“HHS”).

In the weeks preceding this Executive Order, the USDOE conducted layoffs within the Department. On March 11, 2025, the USDOE announced that nearly fifty percent of the USDOE’s workforce would be placed on administrative leave beginning Friday, March 21, 2025. In that press release, USDOE stated that “The Department of Education will continue to deliver on all statutory programs that fall under the agency’s purview, including formula funding, student loans, Pell Grants, funding for special needs students, and competitive grantmaking.”

Additionally and as referenced above, the USDOE recently closed seven regional OCR locations, including the San Francisco office, which oversees complaints filed in California. While OCR has continued to investigate and enforce federal civil rights laws, it has increasingly partnered with other civil rights enforcement offices in different federal departments, such as the HHS.

We note, while an executive order has the force of law, it cannot override federal statutory law if it conflicts with legislation passed by Congress.

Creation and Dissolution of Federal Agencies

The Executive Order does not guarantee the dissolution of the USDOE. Federal administrative agencies can only be created, and thus dissolved, by an act of Congress, pursuant to the Necessary and Proper Clause of the U.S. Constitution. In her statement regarding the Executive Order, Secretary McMahon confirmed the Trump Administration’s intent to seek Congressional dissolution of the USDOE.

The USDOE was established by the Department of Education Organization Act (“Act”) (Public Law 96-88) in 1979. The Act specifically identifies many of the offices within the USDOE, including OCR, the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, Office of Postsecondary Education, and the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services. It also transferred responsibility for enforcing the General Education Provisions Act, Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (“ESEA”), Higher Education Act of 1965, Education Amendments of 1978, and the IDEA, among others, from different federal departments to the Department of Education. The Act also limits the ability of the Secretary to reallocate, alter, or discontinue several offices or functions within the USDOE.

While there have been recent congressional attempts to dissolve the Department of Education, the U.S. Congress has been largely unsuccessful to date.

Impacts on Federally Funded Programs

As noted above, the USDOE is currently responsible for administering and enforcing several federal statutes. Unless Congress overturns these statutory programs in the course of ending the USDOE, dismantling the USDOE will necessarily result in the transfer of administrative and enforcement duties to other federal agencies and departments.

Eliminating the USDOE may also impact federal funding to the states under the IDEA and Title I of the ESEA.

The Individuals with Disabilities Act (“IDEA”):

The IDEA was enacted in 1997, and ensures that all children with disabilities are guaranteed a free appropriate public education designed to meet their unique needs. The IDEA provides federal legislative guidance on special education and disability accommodations in schools. The IDEA is on the largest statutory programs administered by the USDOE. The IDEA authorizes formula grants to states and discretionary grants to eligible applicants, such as state educational agencies, institutions of higher education, and other nonprofit organizations. The USDOE also issues regulations implementing the IDEA. Receipt of federal funds is contingent, in part, on compliance with the provisions of the IDEA and its implementing regulations, as determined by the USDOE.

On March 21, 2025, President Trump announced that programs for students with special needs would be shifted to the HHS. While the specific details of the transfer are unclear, it may pose significant risks to federal oversight of the Act. It may also significantly disrupt the distribution of grants under the Act. It is unclear how this transfer would impact funding formulas and regulatory monitoring in place which requires that educational institutions comply with the IDEA as a condition of acceptance of federal money. Educational institutions likely would still be obligated to comply with and enforce the IDEA, in addition to state laws pertaining to special education services.

Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act:

The elimination of the USDOE may also impact the receipt of funds under Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (“Title I”). Title I provides supplemental financial assistance to school districts for children from low-income families. Its purpose is to provide all children with significant opportunity to receive a fair, equitable, and high-quality education. Allocation of Title I funds to state and local education agencies is based on poverty estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau. Like other programs administered by the USDOE, dismantling the USDOE will not, by itself, rescind Title I, but may change how federal funds are distributed.

Without specific direction from Congress, however, it is unclear exactly how these and other programs, administered by the USDOE, would be impacted by the dissolution of the USDOE.

AALRR attorneys will continue to monitor executive, administrative, and legislative actions that may impact the USDOE and its duties to provide updated guidance for educational agencies. If your educational agency has questions about this Executive Order or the contents of this Alert, please contact the authors of this Alert or your usual AALRR counsel.