Senator Collins’ Legislation to Block Transfer of Offices from the Department of Education Clears Committee

Bill preventing the Department from transferring the Offices of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, Postsecondary Education, Elementary and Secondary Education, and Indian Education advanced by a bipartisan vote of 13 to 9.

Click HERE to watch and HERE to download video of Senator Collins discussing the bill during the HELP Committee markup.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Susan Collins joined with Senators Tim Kaine (D-VA) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) in introducing legislation that would prevent the Department of Education from transferring critical offices to other federal agencies that lack the staff and expertise needed to execute their missions. The bill was considered at a Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee markup today, where the bill advanced by a bipartisan vote of 13 to 9.

Specifically, the senators' legislation would prevent the Department from transferring the Offices of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS), Postsecondary Education (OPE), Elementary and Secondary Education (OESE), and Indian Education to any other federal agency. The legislation has been endorsed by the Bipartisan Policy Center, the National Education Association, and the American Federation of Teachers.

"This bill is straightforward. It keeps the administration of important landmark education programs at the Department of Education where Congress specifically put them and where they belong," said Senator Collins during the markup. "These transfers are misaligned with their program purposes. For example, the Administration has an agreement with the Department of Health and Human Services to administer the education office that manages the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, known as IDEA. That change fundamentally misunderstands the history and intent of the Special Education program, which was created in 1975 to ensure that children with disabilities receive a free and appropriate public education. Today, this office helps meet the education needs of more than 8 million children with disabilities. It's primarily focused on the student's education needs, not on their health care needs. Prior to IDEA, far too many children with disabilities did not receive an education."

"America's students and economy depend on the quality of our schools," said Senator Kaine. "That's why I worked on a bipartisan solution to bar the Department of Education from transferring critical offices and programs-including those that students with disabilities rely on-to other federal agencies that lack the staff and expertise needed to carry out their work. I urge my colleagues to support this legislation, and will continue to do all I can to ensure that the Department is setting students up for success."

"We are long overdue for a serious national conversation about updating the federal role in education for the 21st century. That is a debate worth having. But dismantling the Department of Education piece by piece and shuffling programs between agencies is not reform. Sens. Tim Kaine, Susan Collins, and Lisa Murkowski deserve real credit for working together on this critical effort, and I look forward to working with them and other members on reforms that will ensure every child has access to a high-quality education," said Margaret Spellings, President and CEO of the Bipartisan Policy Center and former Secretary of Education under President George W. Bush.

The National Education Association (NEA) urged senators to "vote yes on S. 5046 to prohibit transferring specified Department of Education offices and functions to other federal agencies-as well as any amendments to prevent implementing current or future inter-agency agreements (IAAs). The Trump administration's illegal push to dismantle the Department of Education (ED) promises 'less bureaucracy.' In reality, it is hurting the students who are our nation's future leaders and workforce, while creating more bureaucracy and new hurdles for those seeking to educate our nation's youth," said Kimberly Johnson Trinca, Director of Government Relations for the NEA.

"The moves to dismantle the Department of Education by dispersing its functions to other federal departments have been particularly damaging. The administration has created a multiagency structure with overlapping responsibilities, duplicated costs and unclear chains of accountability. This is neither streamlining nor reform-it's an abdication and abandonment of America's future. S. 5046 would ensure that American families have access to that expertise by prohibiting the Department of Education from transferring the offices overseeing special education, postsecondary education, elementary and secondary education, and Native American education programs to other agencies. The bipartisan bill will protect students, families, schools and communities from losing the support to which they are entitled under law," said Randi Weingarten, President of the American Federation of Teachers.

Click here to read the complete text of the legislation.

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