• The Latest Episode of “Will They or Won’t They” in Washington

    By Manish Naik

    Director of Legislative Services

    Since January, the nation’s schools have watched in horror at the drama being produced by leaders in Washington. Funding cuts, shifting definitions of longstanding discrimination laws, and mass firings have filled educators with apprehension about what else could possibly happen next. There has been no summer hiatus to the action and even more expected this fall.

    The longest episode so far this year was around Budget Reconciliation. Lasting almost six months, there were considerable questions about whether the new Republican majority in Congress could deliver on the priorities outlined by the White House. The reconciliation process does not require 60 votes in the Senate and is used historically when one party controls the House, Senate, and White House. This year, Budget Reconciliation was billed by the majority as an opportunity to extend expiring tax cuts and implement new tax policy changes, increase spending on defense, immigration and border security, support new energy projects, and reduce federal entitlement spending. 

    Throughout consideration on Capitol Hill, there were numerous scenes when it appeared that certain actors would not support the proposal, with moderate Republicans voicing opposition to extreme safety net cuts and hardliners demanding even greater reductions.  In the end, the voices of dissent were quieted by White House pressure and the Budget Reconciliation bill – which includes massive cuts to Medicaid and the  Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and a new K-12 tuition tax credit – was enacted in early July.

    Another episode began playing immediately afterwards when the White House ordered a hold on about $6 billion in federal funds that Congress had already approved for the 2025-26 school year. This funding is historically made available to States and school districts on July 1st yet was frozen just weeks before the new school year was set to begin. The impact was instantaneous for summer school funding provided to the 21st Century Community Learning Centers program, with a number of districts forced to cancel sessions due to budgetary uncertainty. Professional development training, support for English learners, school safety, and other planned expenditures were also halted or suspended at the local level while the federal funds’ future remained unclear. At one point, Office of Management and Budget staff at the White House even hinted at the possible permanent rescission of federal education funds. Eventually, public outcry at this turn of events, as well as the introduction of multiple lawsuits, led to the White House backing down and releasing all of the education funds, ending the pointless affair after three weeks.

    This fall has seen Congress returning to Washington just a few weeks before the potential launch of a federal government shutdown, with the country watching in suspense as we approach the start of the new fiscal year on October 1st. Congress rarely completes their funding bills on time, but the annual drama around approving a funding extension continues to take place this year. The White House and Republican leaders in Congress are pushing for a “clean” extension with no changes in funding or policy, while the Democratic minority argue that their support of an extension is unlikely without the inclusion of policy changes around lowering health care premiums or undoing the Medicaid cuts from the Budget Reconciliation bill. 

    District leaders should remember that most of the funding for the current school year has already been made available to States, and the remainder is typically available in early October regardless of a government shutdown. But in spite of the nation long ago tiring of the government shutdown plot twist, leaders in Washington continue to point fingers, run lines from old scripts, and make us tune in to the unnecessary spectacle, streaming now on C-SPAN.