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U.S. Education Department Undergoes Major Restructuring, Transfers Key Functions to Other Agencies

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Education Department Responsibilities Shift to Other Federal Agencies

The Trump administration is transferring significant portions of the U.S. Department of Education's responsibilities to other federal agencies through interagency agreements, while only Congress has the authority to legally close the department.

Student Loan Management Shifts to Treasury

The Treasury Department is assuming control over key functions of the federal student loan portfolio under a three-phase plan.

Phases of Transition

  • Phase One: Treasury will assume responsibility for collecting on defaulted student loans. As of early March, 9.2 million borrowers were in default, with 2.4 million in late-stage delinquency.
  • Phase Two: Treasury's management will expand to include servicing a portion of non-defaulted debts, pending an assessment of practicability.
  • Phase Three: Treasury will take over administration of the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). Treasury currently operates a data-retrieval tool for income verification on the FAFSA.

Borrower Impact

Education Department officials have stated that borrowers "should see no change" and that the transition "should be seamless."

Conflicting Views on Authority

  • Education Secretary Linda McMahon stated that the Education Department "failed to effectively manage and deliver" these programs and that leveraging Treasury's expertise would result in "functioning programs after decades of mismanagement."
  • Rachel Gittleman, president of AFGE Local 252, which represents Education Department employees, stated the administration is "unlawfully dismantl[ing] the Education Department."
  • A senior Education Department official acknowledged that Treasury cannot assume all statutory student loan obligations and that only Congress has the authority to close the department.

Civil Rights and Special Education Transferred

The Office for Civil Rights (OCR) is being moved to the Department of Justice, and the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) is being moved to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Scope of Changes

  • OCR enforces federal laws prohibiting discrimination in education based on disability, gender, race, and national origin.
  • OSERS oversees programs for students with disabilities and ensures compliance with the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).
  • The Education Department will retain some tasks required by law, such as responding to audits and issuing final determinations in civil rights cases.

Statements

  • Education Department officials Kim Richey and Kim Rogers stated in a letter that the moves aim to "end micromanagement" and strengthen enforcement of civil rights laws.
  • Denise Forte, president and CEO of Ed Trust, criticized the move, stating: "This is another vindictive attempt to undermine public education."
  • Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA) and Sen. Patty Murray (D-WA) argued that the changes could create uncertainty and widen inequities for underserved students.
  • Disability advocates from the Center for Learner Equity opposed transferring special education oversight to HHS, citing differences between health and education systems.

Elementary, Postsecondary, and Indian Education Reassigned

Additional interagency agreements have been finalized to transfer day-to-day operational duties for several congressionally mandated programs.

Specific Program Reassignments

  • Department of Labor: Will assume much of the work from the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, including management of Title I (federal funding for schools with low-income students), and a substantial portion of the Office of Postsecondary Education's responsibilities.
  • Department of the Interior: Will take over the majority of the work from the Office of Indian Education.
  • Department of State: Will manage international education and foreign language studies programs.
  • Department of Health and Human Services (HHS): Will become responsible for the Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) program, which provides childcare services on college campuses for low-income student-parents.

Legal and Operational Context

  • The offices designated for these transfers were originally established within the Education Department by Congress in 1979.
  • In a Sunday op-ed, Secretary McMahon described the strategy: "We'll peel back the layers of federal bureaucracy by partnering with agencies that are better suited to manage programs and empowering states and local leaders to oversee the rest."
  • Opponents of the changes assert the White House lacks legal authority to transfer functions of congressionally created offices without congressional approval.
  • A department briefing with lawmakers stated that statutory responsibilities for programs would remain with the Education Department even if operational work is conducted by other agencies.
  • Legal challenges opposing the moves are anticipated.

Headquarters Relocation and Staff Changes

The Education Department has announced its staff will vacate the Lyndon B. Johnson building in Washington, D.C. The building, reported to be approximately 70% vacant, will be transferred to the Department of Energy. Staff are scheduled to relocate to a smaller office at 500 D Street SW in August. The move is projected to save over $350 million in deferred maintenance costs.

Staff Reductions and New Hiring

  • Secretary McMahon has overseen a reduction in the department's staff by nearly half, to 2,300 employees.
  • Despite these cuts, the Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) is hiring approximately 380 new workers, according to internal documents obtained by NPR.
  • As of April, FSA had 731 full-time equivalent staff, half of its pre-Trump administration level of 1,440.
  • Internal documents indicate FSA needs to hire an additional 334 FTEs to meet its target; 52 workers have been hired since September.
  • The new hires are not former employees returning to their old jobs, according to department press secretary Ellen Keast.

Secretary McMahon acknowledged in a public appearance last year that the reduction in force had gone too far in some areas, stating: "You always just want to cut fat. … Sometimes you cut into the muscle and you cut a little too deep. And we've brought some people back."

Criticism and Oversight Findings

  • Rep. Bobby Scott stated that the headquarters move does not reduce bureaucracy but rather rearranges it, and reflects efforts to lessen the federal government's role in ensuring equal access to education.
  • The Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that FSA stopped reviewing the accuracy of loan servicers' records and recordings of borrower calls before last year's cuts.
  • A separate GAO investigation found that back-and-forth at the Office for Civil Rights cost taxpayers between $28.5 million and $38 million.
  • A former FSA staffer who was laid off last year and is applying for a new position noted a new application question reading: "How would you help advance the President's Executive Orders and policy priorities in this role?" The staffer stated: "I feel as though they want you to show loyalty to this administration."

Statements

  • Rachel Gittleman of AFGE Local 252 said: "What these job postings confirm is what we've known all along: Our jobs matter. And [our jobs] are needed in order for our federal student loan system to function adequately for borrowers."
  • Ellen Keast, department press secretary for higher education, said: "Returning education to the states and breaking up the federal education bureaucracy does not mean that critical programs won't continue."

Broader Context

This marks the tenth interagency agreement dispersing the department's responsibilities to other agencies. A July agreement previously transferred adult education and family literacy programs to the Labor Department.

The administration has noted that these partnerships are intended to improve service delivery and efficiency. President Donald Trump has campaigned on closing the Education Department, an action that can only be taken by Congress.

Lindsey Burke, the department's deputy chief of staff for policy and programs, who led briefings on the changes, previously co-authored the education section of Project 2025, a conservative blueprint that advocates for the elimination of the department.