Federal Budget/Funding

Read more about how much federal money is spent on K-12 education and its impact
President Donald Trump, center right, walks with Education Secretary Linda McMahon, center left, and guests after a back to school event in the Rose Garden of the White House, Monday, Aug. 24, 2026, in Washington.
President Donald Trump, center right, walks with Education Secretary Linda McMahon, center left, and guests after a back-to-school event in the Rose Garden of the White House on Monday, Aug. 24, 2026, in Washington. A new report envisions a number of scenarios in which the new federal school choice program launching next year could become one of the nation's largest K-12 funding streams.
Alex Brandon/AP
School Choice & Charters Could Trump's School Choice Program Rival Title I or IDEA in Size?
A new report looks at how much money could be raised under different scenarios.
Arianna Prothero, September 10, 2026
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6 min read
Russell Vought, Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) testifies on the OMB budget during a House Appropriations Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington, DC, on June 4, 2025.
Russell Vought, director of the White House Office of Management and Budget, testifies during a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington on June 4, 2025. OMB has been slow to release congressionally appropriated funding to the Institute of Education Sciences, the U.S. Department of Education's research arm. IES now has just weeks to spend $180 million before it expires.
SAUL LOEB / AFP via Getty Images
Education Funding Ed. Dept. Risks Letting $180 Million for Research Expire as Deadline Looms
Spending by the agency's research arm has lagged most significantly compared with previous years.
Mark Lieberman, September 2, 2026
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6 min read
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., arrives for a closed-door meeting with Republican lawmakers as he prepares for a vote on a stopgap spending bill to keep the federal government fully funded through early December, avoiding the possibility of a shutdown before the midterm elections, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2026.
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., arrives for a closed-door meeting with Republican lawmakers at the U.S. Capitol on Sept. 1, 2026, as he prepares for a vote on a stopgap spending bill to keep the federal government fully funded through early December, avoiding the possibility of a shutdown before the midterm elections. The continuing resolution carries over the current year's funding levels for education programs into the first two months of the federal fiscal year that starts Oct. 1.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Education Funding Averting a Shutdown, Congress Punts Federal Spending Decisions to December
Federal funding talks will continue into December as Congress agrees to avoid a shutdown.
Mark Lieberman, September 1, 2026
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2 min read
A student participates in a reading and writing lesson at the Head Start program at Easterseals South Florida, an organization gets about a third of its funding from the federal government, Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025, in Miami.
A student participates in a reading and writing lesson at the Head Start program at Easterseals South Florida, an organization gets about a third of its funding from the federal government in Miami on Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2025. As it seeks to scale back regulations governing Head Start, the Trump administration has stalled competitions for programs awaiting renewed funding.
Rebecca Blackwell/AP Photo
Early Childhood Head Start Providers Struggle as Trump Admin. Holds Up Funding Competitions
At least 85 Head Start providers serving more than 39,000 children across 38 states are in limbo.
Caitlynn Peetz Stephens & Mark Lieberman, August 18, 2026
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9 min read
A sign from the General Services Administration is posted outside of the Department of Education headquarters in Washington, D.C. on Friday, July 17, 2026.
A sign installed by the General Services Administration is posted outside the Department of Education headquarters in Washington on July 17, 2026. Despite shifting its programs to other agencies, the Education Department will send billions of dollars in formula funds for schools through its own grants portal on Oct. 1, rather than a portal run by the Department of Labor.
Eric Lee for Education Week
Education Funding Education Department Will Keep Sending Most K-12 Funds Through Its Own System
The agency will send formula funds through its own system again despite program shifts to other agencies.
Mark Lieberman, August 17, 2026
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5 min read
The Department of Education headquarters in Washington, D.C. on Friday, July 17, 2026.
The Department of Education headquarters in Washington on Friday, July 17, 2026. Federal funding for education research may be starting to flow, even as the overall spending picture remains unclear.
Eric Lee for Education Week
Federal After Months of Standstill, Ed. Dept. Announces New Federal Research Funding
The agency outlined its fiscal 2027 grantmaking amid questions about its sluggish spending.
Stephen Sawchuk & Mark Lieberman, August 11, 2026
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7 min read
The U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C. on Friday, July 17, 2026.
The U.S. Capitol building in Washington, D.C. on Friday, July 17, 2026.
Eric Lee for Education Week
Education Funding Video What's in Store for School Funding for 2026-27?
A new education tax credit, federal budget negotiations, and more are in store.
Mark Lieberman, Marvin Joseph & Yi-Jo Shen, August 5, 2026
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1 min read
A collage-style illustration of images of the U.S. Department of Education building, the U.S. Capitol building, and dollar bills on top of a wooden school desktop with a pencil on it and a school bus underneath. The dollar bills appear to have been punched out with a hole punch in a few areas, and those missing circles are sprinkled on the desk and school bus below.
Illustration by Emily Wright for Education Week + Getty
Education Funding Trump's Education Department Is Letting Tens of Millions of Dollars Expire
Education Week found the agency didn't spend its full budget last year and appears on track to do so again.
Mark Lieberman, August 4, 2026
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10 min read
An illustration of three school leaders at a desk and one is holding an umbrella. They are all looking up into the sky where a sun is peeking through several clouds that are depicting dollar bills.
Illustration by Robert Neubecker for Education Week
Education Funding From the Feds on Down, School Funding Is Uncertain. What to Know
Federal turbulence during the Trump administration highlights the precarity of state and local funding, too.
Mark Lieberman, August 3, 2026
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7 min read
Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought testifies during a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill, Tuesday, June 30, 2026, in Washington.
Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought testifies during a House Appropriations subcommittee hearing on Capitol Hill, on June 30, 2026, in Washington. Proposed changes to federal administration of grants have raised concerns among school groups.
Mariam Zuhaib/AP
Federal K-12 Community Urges Trump Administration to Rethink Grant Rule Changes
About 500,000 public comments, including those from school districts, have poured in about proposed rule changes.
Mark Walsh, July 21, 2026
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8 min read
The Eisenhower Executive Office Building is seen from the Washington Monument, on May 26, 2026, in Washington.
The Eisenhower Executive Office Building, which houses the White House Office of Management and Budget, is seen from the Washington Monument, on May 26, 2026, in Washington. OMB has proposed a sweeping set of regulatory changes would add new restrictions on grant-funded efforts that clash with Trump administration policy positions and give political appointees new powers in federal grantmaking.
Mark Schiefelbein/AP
Education Funding Explainer Big Changes to Federal Grants Are Coming: What They Could Mean for Schools
The White House is proposing sweeping regulatory changes for federal grantmaking.
Mark Lieberman, July 8, 2026
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11 min read
An empty Chicago Public Schools classroom is seen on Dec. 15, 2025 .
An empty Chicago public school classroom is seen on Dec. 15, 2025. Schools in Illinois are preparing to lay off staff as fallout from federal grant cuts continues.
Antonio Perez/Chicago Tribune via TNS
Education Funding Schools Lay Off Staff as Lawsuits Challenging Federal Grant Cuts Continue
Recent lawsuits have challenged federal grant cuts affecting special education and English-learner teachers.
Mark Lieberman, July 1, 2026
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6 min read
TahSoGhay Collah, right, teaches a third-grade English learners class at the 700-student intermediate school that serves grades 3 through 5, in Worthington, Minn., on Oct. 22, 2024.
TahSoGhay Collah, right, teaches a third-grade English learners class at the 700-student intermediate school that serves grades 3 through 5, in Worthington, Minn., on Oct. 22, 2024. The Education Department discontinued grants last year that would help develop teachers of English learners.
Jessie Wardarski/AP
Education Funding Federal Grant Cuts for English Learners Face Lawsuit
Last year, the federal agency ended 28 grants for training teachers working with English learners.
Ileana Najarro, June 17, 2026
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5 min read
Cafeteria worker Nuria Alvarenga serves lunch to students through a service window at Firebaugh High School in Lynwood, Calif. on Wednesday, April 3, 2024. Demand for school lunches has increased after California guaranteed free meals to all students regardless of their family's income. Now, districts are preparing to compete with the fast food industry for employees after a new law took effect guaranteeing a $20 minimum wage for fast food workers.
A cafeteria worker serves students at Firebaugh High School in Lynwood, Calif., on April 3, 2024. School districts are increasingly uncertain about whether they can rely on federal education funds, $7 billion of which were delayed for weeks last July, prompting a more conservative approach to budgeting in some places.
Richard Vogel/AP
Education Funding Districts Brace for the Unexpected as Federal Funding Troubles Linger
Last year's formula funding delay has prompted some districts to budget more cautiously.
Mark Lieberman, June 11, 2026
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7 min read