Education Department officials said Friday that they will release billions of dollars in grants to education programs across the country, causing a collective sigh of relief for education advocates from lawmakers to school teachers.
The administration began withholding more than $6 billion in funding on July 1 as part of its government-wide spending review.
Republican and Democratic lawmakers decried the move, and several lawsuits were filed challenging the freeze. Congress previously appropriated the money in a bill signed this year by President Donald Trump.
Ten Republican senators, including Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME), sent a letter to the Education Department earlier this month asking the White House to release the funding.
“These formula funds are essential to the operation of Maine’s public schools, supporting everything from classroom instruction to adult education,” Collins said in a statement reacting to the funds’ release.
The Education Department relented last week, relaying that it would release $1.3 billion of the money for after-school and summer programming. The funds are critical to nonprofit organizations such as the YMCA.
“I am pleased that following outreach from my colleagues and me, the Administration has agreed to release these highly-anticipated resources,” Collins continued. “I will continue working to ensure that education funds are delivered without delay so that schools have adequate time to plan their finances for the upcoming school year, allowing students to arrive back to class this fall to properly-funded schools.”
Officials at the department, led by Secretary Linda McMahon, said Friday that the Office of Management and Budget had completed its review of the programs and would begin sending money to states next week.
According to the OMB, some of the funds have supported a “radical leftwing agenda.”
“We share your concern,” the Republican senators concurred. “However, we do not believe that is happening with these funds.”
Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY), one of the staunchest education advocates among House Republicans, sent a letter to the White House earlier this month urging the adminsitration to release the funds.
Lawler reacted to the funds’ release in a statement to the Washington Examiner.
COLUMBIA DISCIPLINES DOZENS OF STUDENT PROTESTERS AS SCHOOL NEGOTIATES WITH TRUMP ADMINISTRATION
“Today is a win for students, families, and educators across New York and our nation,” Lawler said.
“This funding is a critical investment in programs with proven results that provide students with the tools they need to succeed in and out of the classroom,” he said. “I’m grateful that President Trump and his Administration responded quickly to our request and worked to release the necessary funding to keep these vital programs in place.”
