Federal Policy

News, analysis, and opinion about federal education laws, regulations, and proposals—and their impact
The tax credit program would allow individuals who donate up to $1,700 to a scholarship granting organization to receive a dollar-for-dollar federal income tax credit in exchange. Pictured are students at Northeast Elementary located at 1024 Fleming Ave. in Jackson on Aug. 20, 2025.
Students at Northeast Elementary School in Jackson, Mich., on Aug. 20, 2025. A tax-credit scholarship program launching in January will allow individuals who donate up to $1,700 to a scholarship granting organization to receive a dollar-for-dollar federal income tax credit. Those SGOs can give out awards to cover private school tuition as well as some expenses for public school students.
Abra Richardson/mlive.com via TNS
School Choice & Charters Federal Education Tax Credit Rules Are Finally Here. What We Know So Far
The Treasury Department unveiled regulations governing a massive infusion of education funding nationwide.
Arianna Prothero & Mark Lieberman, October 1, 2026
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5 min read
Director of the United States Office of Management and Budget Russell Vought walks down a staircase on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, July 16, 2026.
Russell Vought, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, walks down a staircase on Capitol Hill in Washington on July 16, 2026. The OMB withheld millions of dollars from the U.S. Department of Education's research arm for months, raising the possibility it wouldn't spend the money on education research and data collection in time for its Sept. 30, 2026, expiration.
Allison Robbert/AP
Education Funding Ed. Dept. Meets Research Spending Deadline—But Bigger Funding Challenges Loom
The Institute of Education Sciences finished spending more than $170 million set to expire Sept. 30.
Mark Lieberman, September 30, 2026
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3 min read
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., center, confers with Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, talk following a Senate Democratic Caucus meeting, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026.
Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, (right, speaking with Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer) secured a commitment from Education Secretary Linda McMahon to supply additional funding for Native Hawaiian Education Program grantees when the U.S. Department of Education hadn't launched a competition for new grants. The Trump administration practice of abruptly canceling existing competitive education grants has slowed, but the Education Department is using procedures that result in fewer new grants and less stability for funding recipients.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Education Funding Trump's Ed. Dept. Is Still Disrupting Grants—Just More Quietly Than Before
The agency is deploying subtler procedures that result in fewer new grants and less stability for recipients.
Mark Lieberman, September 30, 2026
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11 min read
Giant tax funnel drops money into a public school building. Federal tax scholarships, public schools, private schools, charter schools
Vanessa Solis/Education Week + Getty
Federal Opinion Public Educators Are Skeptical of the New Federal Tax Credits. They Needn't Be
Unlike vouchers, the new scholarships can benefit students choosing to attend public schools.
Deborah A. Gist & Thomas Arnett, September 29, 2026
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5 min read
Russell Vought, acting director, Office of Management and Budget, right, and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin listen during a cabinet meeting, Friday, July 31, 2026, at Camp David, the presidential retreat, near Thurmont, Md., Friday, July 31, 2026.
Russell Vought, director of the White House Office of Management, listens during a Cabinet meeting on July 31, 2026, at Camp David, the presidential retreat, near Thurmont, Md. The White House has announced an $810 million package of "pocket rescissions," saying it won't spend the congressionally appropriated funds before the end of the 2026 federal fiscal year, which ends Wednesday. The rescissions include nearly $100 million for U.S. Department of Education program.
Jacquelyn Martin/AP 
Education Funding Trump, Bucking Congress Yet Again, Cancels $100 Million for Education
A "pocket rescission" hits programs for migratory farmworkers and college-level language instruction.
Mark Lieberman, September 28, 2026
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7 min read
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JUNE 13: Local elementary schools participate in the annual Brooklyn Gay Pride Parade, celebrating its 30th year, June 13, 2026 in the Park Slope neighborhood of the borough of Brooklyn, New York City.
Local elementary schools participate in the annual Brooklyn Gay Pride Parade, celebrating its 30th year on June 13, 2026, in the Park Slope neighborhood of the borough of Brooklyn, New York City. The Trump administration has officially rescinded a Biden-era regulation that extended Title IX's prohibition on sex discrimination to cover discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images
Federal Ed. Dept. Officially Kills Biden Rule That Added LGBTQ+ Protections to Title IX
The Education Department reinstates 2020 Title IX regulations effectively in place since early 2025.
Mark Walsh, September 28, 2026
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4 min read
Education Week opinion letters submissions
Gwen Keraval for Education Week
Education Funding Letter to the Editor Expired Funds, Unreliability Harm Rural Schools
Responsible planning requires predictable funding, says a school district superintendent.
September 25, 2026
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1 min read
Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, center, arrives for a news conference about President Donald Trump s Education Freedom Tax Credit on March 27, 2026 at Hamtramck Academy in Hamtramck, Mich.
Secretary of Education Linda McMahon, center, arrives for a news conference about President Donald Trump's tax-credit scholarship program on March 27, 2026 at Hamtramck Academy in Hamtramck, Mich., where she urged Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer to opt her state in. The Trump administration, through the Department of the Treasury, is expected to release regulations for the program in the coming days. Several governors have said they're awaiting those regulations before deciding whether their states participate.
Katy Kildee/The Detroit News via TNS
Education Funding Federal Tax Credits for K-12 Scholarships: What We Know (and Don't)
The Trump administration is preparing to issue rules for its new, ambitious school choice program.
Mark Lieberman & Arianna Prothero, September 23, 2026
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11 min read
Collage-style illustration of a teacher reading to young children, with clippings of line 11 from form 1040 around the image. Pieces of paper money also surround them and off to the far left there is a clipping from the instructions for form 1040 from the IRS, with the heading "Educator Expenses" visible.
Illustration by Emily Wright for Education Week + Getty
Early Childhood A Tax Break for Early Childhood Educators: Why This Policy Change Matters
A new law expands the federal educator expense deduction to include early childhood educators.
Elizabeth Heubeck, September 23, 2026
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4 min read
Collage-style illustration of the top of the U.S. Capitol building rotunda, with the upper portion hinging open and an arm wearing a suit reaches out holding a pen. The hand is writing a red X through a clipping of a printed letter B, and cut out letters A and C are on the page as well.
Illustration by Emily Wright for Education Week + Getty
Reading & Literacy Opinion Why Congress’s Latest Foray Into the Reading Wars Is Too Sloppy to Work
In trying to promote the science of reading, are politicians doing the opposite?
Timothy Shanahan, September 23, 2026
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5 min read
Student sitting criss cross pondering.
Collage by Laura Baker/Education Week + Getty
Student Well-Being & Movement Teen Mental Health Is Improving, CDC Finds. Then Why Are Experts Still Concerned?
Student mental health remains a big challenge for schools to address.
Lauraine Langreo, September 21, 2026
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5 min read
Collage of Trump signing an executive order, money, desks, torn paper, legal pad.
Collage by Laura Baker/Education Week with Getty + Evan Vucci/AP
Education Funding Trump's Education Funding Maneuvers Were Illegal, Judges Rule
Judges ruled in suits about teacher-training grant cancellations and withheld education research money.
Mark Lieberman, September 18, 2026
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4 min read
WASHINGTON, DC - AUGUST 17: The U.S. Department of Justice Building on August 17, 2026 in Washington, DC.
The U.S. Department of Justice Building on Aug. 17, 2026 in Washington. The Justice Department has teamed up with the U.S. Department of Education to fight school and state policies concerning transgender students it deems objectionable.
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Law & Courts Trump Admin. Turns to Student Privacy Laws in Gender Identity Fights With Schools
The feds are increasingly citing student privacy laws in gender-identity battles with school districts.
Mark Walsh, September 17, 2026
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8 min read
WASHINGTON, DC - SEPTEMBER 16: Members of the U.S. House of Representatives leave the Capitol Building after a session on September 16, 2026 in Washington, DC. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) cancelled votes for Thursday, sending lawmakers home a day early ahead of the midterm-election recess.
Members of the U.S. House of Representatives leave the Capitol after a session on Sept. 16, 2026 in Washington, D.C. The House passed legislation that would make the "science of reading" a priority in some federal literacy grants.
Roberto Schmidt/Getty Images
Reading & Literacy Federal 'Science of Reading' Legislation Passes the House
A bipartisan bill would make the evidence-based instruction a priority in some federal literacy grants.
Sarah Schwartz, September 17, 2026
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3 min read