Last Week in Congress (3/30–4/3/26)
An update will be shared every week that Congress is in session. This will include a short summary of the past week in Congress, as well as a listing of all education-related bills introduced in the House and Senate, relevant Committee and Floor activity, and education-related hearings.
With Congress on Spring Break (and TMZ tracking their activities as TSA agents continue to work without guaranteed funding beyond one questionably legal executive order), the Hill was largely quiet last week. The administration dropped some food for thought in the form of the President’s FY2027 Budget Proposal. While the budget proposal is, in effect, a policy statement outlining the administration’s priorities, it operates under the assumption that Congress will continue to allow the dismantling of the Department without legislative approval through the transfer of significant programs to other federal agencies, the continued focus on “returning education to the states,” consolidation or elimination of numerous discretionary grant programs, and the introduction of a new “Make Education Great Again” (MEGA) block grant program. The Department released its budget justifications yesterday. While the Department proposed significant changes in both funding levels and mechanisms in its FY2026 proposal, Congress ultimately rejected them and kept funding largely consistent with FY2024 levels, which were maintained through 2025 via continuing resolution. Congress did not, however, take significant action to reject the Department’s use of Interagency Agreements, and an emboldened Department seems poised to continue to use that mechanism to support its agenda.
· H.R. 8162 (Meuser, R-PA), to amend title 5, United States Code, to make certain modifications to how agencies conduct periodic reviews of agency rules (Judiciary; Small Business).
· H.R. 8166 (Self, R-TX), to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to deny tax-exempt status to certain organizations receiving contributions or gifts from citizens or nationals of foreign adversaries (Ways and Means).
· H.R. 8181 (Messmer, R-IN), to amend the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to require States to establish critical industry funds or certain industry or sector partnerships (Education and Workforce).
· H.R. 8183 (Owens, R-UT), to amend the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act to provide for the establishment of talent marketplaces (Education and Workforce).