Harris Introduces Two Bills to Cut Bureaucracy at the Department of Education

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Congressman Mark Harris (NC-08) introduced the Less Bureaucracy, Better K-12 Education Act and the Less Bureaucracy, Better Higher Education Act, two bills to transfer the administration of certain federal education programs to the Department of Labor and help codify President Trump's plan to right-size the Department of Education.

The bills are part of the House Committee on Education and Workforce's "Less Bureaucracy, Better Education" legislative package, a 10-bill effort led by Chairman Tim Walberg (MI-05) to reduce federal education bureaucracy, ensure responsibilities are carried out by agencies better positioned to administer them, and keep the focus where it belongs: on students, families, and taxpayers.

"Across America, our schools and colleges are preparing the next generation of leaders," said Rep. Harris. "With educators in my own family, I know the heart they have for helping students reach their full potential. The federal government should support that work, not get in the way with unnecessary bureaucracy. I am proud to introduce these two bills to ensure K-12 and higher education programs are administered by an agency better positioned to serve students and families."

"For decades, Washington has measured success by how much government grows instead of how well students do. The legislative package reflects a simple principle: education policy should be focused on helping students succeed-not preserving a federal bureaucracy for its own sake. Rather than allowing unnecessary layers of Washington bureaucracy to stand between families and the services they rely on, the bills would transfer key statutory authorities to agencies better equipped to carry them out while maintaining continuity for students," said House Education and Workforce Committee Chairman Tim Walberg (MI-05).

BACKGROUND:

• In March 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the Secretary of Education, to the maximum extent appropriate and permitted by law, to take steps to facilitate the closure of the Department of Education and return authority over education to states and local communities while ensuring the continued delivery of services, programs, and benefits on which Americans rely.
  
• As part of the administration's effort to reduce federal education bureaucracy, the Department of Education and the Department of Labor have established partnerships involving the administration of elementary, secondary, and postsecondary education programs. Under these partnerships, the Department of Labor has taken a greater role in administering certain federal education programs.
  
• The Less Bureaucracy, Better K-12 Education Act and the Less Bureaucracy, Better Higher Education Act would build on these efforts by transferring responsibility for administering specified federal education programs to the Department of Labor while preserving the statutory authorities and funding purposes governing those programs.
  

Read the full text of the Less Bureaucracy, Better K-12 Education Act here.

Read the full text of the Less Bureaucracy, Better Higher Education Act here.

Read the Washington Examiner's exclusive coverage of Rep. Harris's legislation here.

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