[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1402 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1402
To abolish the Department of Education, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
April 9, 2025
Mr. Rounds (for himself, Mr. Banks, and Mr. Sheehy) introduced the
following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on
Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To abolish the Department of Education, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Returning Education to Our States
Act''.
SEC. 2. ABOLISHMENT OF THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION.
(a) Termination.--Effective on the date that is 1 year after the
date of enactment of this Act, the Department of Education is hereby
terminated.
(b) Repeal.--Effective on the date that is 1 year after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Department of Education Organization Act (20
U.S.C. 3401 et seq.) is repealed.
SEC. 3. GENERAL EDUCATION PROVISIONS ACT; FERPA.
(a) Repeal of GEPA.--Effective on the date that is 1 year after the
date of enactment of this Act, all sections of the General Education
Provision Act (20 U.S.C. 1221 et seq.) are repealed, except for section
400, section 444 (20 U.S.C. 1232g, commonly known as the ``Family
Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974''), and section 460 of such
Act.
(b) Applicability of FERPA.--Section 444 of the General Education
Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g, commonly known as the ``Family
Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974'') shall apply to each
program under section 102 and 203 and each program that was an
applicable program under such Act as of the day before the effective
date of this Act and has been transferred to another Department under
this Act, except that references to the Secretary of Education or the
Department of Education in such section shall be deemed to refer to the
Secretary or department that has administrative responsibility for such
program.
SEC. 4. TRANSFER OF CIVIL RIGHTS ENFORCEMENT.
Effective on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Office of Civil Rights of the Department of Education
shall be abolished, and the Civil Rights Division of the Department of
Justice shall be responsible for receiving complaints and otherwise
enforcing and carrying out Federal civil rights laws that are
applicable to the program under section 102 and 203 and the programs
that are transferred from the Department of Education to other
Departments under this Act, including--
(1) section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29
U.S.C. 794);
(2) title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (20 U.S.C.
1681 et seq.);
(3) title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (42 U.S.C.
2000d et seq.); or
(4) the Age Discrimination Act of 1975 (42 U.S.C. 6101 et
seq.).
TITLE I--ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION
SEC. 101. ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION ACT PROGRAMS.
(a) Functions Transferred to the Department of Interior.--Effective
on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act,
there shall be transferred to the Department of the Interior the
functions, programs, authorities, personnel, assets, and liabilities of
the programs and activities of the Department of Education, and the
functions and authorities vested in the Secretary of Education--
(1) that are carried out by the Office of Indian Education
of the Department of Education;
(2) under the Native American and Alaska Native Children in
School Program authorized under subpart 1 of part A of title
III of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 6821 et seq.); and
(3) under title VI of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 7401 et seq.).
(b) Functions Transferred to the Department of Defense.--Effective
on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act,
there shall be transferred to the Department of Defense the functions,
programs, authorities, personnel, assets, and liabilities of the
programs and activities of the Department of Education, and the
functions and authorities vested in the Secretary of Education, under
title VII of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 7701 et seq.).
SEC. 102. ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION STATE BLOCK GRANT
PROGRAMS.
(a) In General.--Beginning 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall carry out 2
programs under which the Secretary of Health and Human Services makes
allocations to States to support early childhood, elementary, and
secondary education, including career and technical education.
(b) Allocations to States With Amounts Equal to Title I.--In
addition to allocations under subsection (c), from amounts made
available to carry out this subsection for a fiscal year, the Secretary
of Health and Human Services shall allot to each State an amount that
is equal to the amount that the State would have received for that
fiscal year under part A of title I of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311 et seq.) as in effect on the day
before the date of enactment of this Act.
(c) Allocations to States With Other Amounts.--In addition to
allocations under subsection (b), the Secretary of Health and Human
Services shall carry out the following:
(1) Reservation of funds.--From the total amount
appropriated to carry out this subsection for a fiscal year,
the Secretary of Health and Human Services shall reserve--
(A) one-half of 1 percent for allotments for the
United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and
the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, to be
distributed among those outlying areas on the basis of
their relative need, as determined by the Secretary, in
accordance with the purpose of this title;
(B) one-half of 1 percent for the Secretary of the
Interior for programs under this section in schools
operated or funded by the Bureau of Indian Education;
and
(C) 1 percent for the Secretary of Health and Human
Services for the administrative costs of carrying out
this subsection and for providing technical assistance.
(2) State allotments.--
(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraphs (B) and
(C), from the amount appropriated to carry out this
subsection that remains after the Secretary of Health
and Human Services makes the reservations under
paragraph (1), the Secretary of Health and Human
Services shall allot to each State, an amount that
bears the same relationship to the remainder as the
number of individuals aged 5 through 17 in the State,
as determined by the Secretary of Health and Human
Services on the basis of the most recent satisfactory
data, bears to the number of those individuals in all
such States, as so determined.
(B) Small state minimum.--No State receiving an
allotment under this subsection shall receive less than
one-half of 1 percent of the total amount allotted
under this subsection.
(C) Puerto rico.--The amount allotted under this
subsection to the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico for a
fiscal year may not exceed one-half of 1 percent of the
total amount allotted under this subsection.
(d) Use of Funds.--A State that receives an allocation under
subsection (b) or subsection (c), or both subsections, shall use such
funding for any purpose relating to early childhood, elementary, or
secondary education, including career and technical education.
(e) Block Grant Conditions.--As a condition of receiving an
allocation under this section, a State shall provide the Secretary of
Health and Human Services with an assurance that the State will carry
out each of the following:
(1) Submitting student data to the Secretary of Health and
Human Services, annually, as requested by the Secretary of
Health and Human Services and as necessary for executing the
program under this section.
(2) Completing of annual audits that conform to generally
accepted accounting principles, auditing procedures, and
safeguarding of funds that conform to chapter 75 of title 31,
United States Code (commonly known as the ``Single Audit Act of
1984'') and submitting the results of such audits to the
Secretary of Health and Human Services.
(3) Complying with all applicable Federal civil rights
laws, including those described in section 4.
(f) Misused or Misappropriated Funds.--If the Secretary of Health
and Human Services finds that any funds under this section have been
misused or misappropriated by the State, the Secretary of Health and
Human Services--
(1) may require repayment of the misused funds and withhold
Federal funds under this section for the next fiscal year; or
(2) may reach a voluntary resolution agreement with that
State.
(g) Application of FERPA.--Section 444 of the General Education
Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232g, commonly known as the ``Family
Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974'') shall apply to the
program under this section, except that references to the Secretary of
Education or the Department of Education in such section shall be
deemed to refer to the Secretary of Health and Human Services or the
Department of Health and Human Services.
(h) Definitions.--In this section--
(1) the term ``State'' means each of the 50 States, the
District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and each
of the outlying areas; and
(2) the term ``outlying area'' means American Samoa, the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, the United
States Virgin Islands, the Republic of the Marshall Islands,
the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of Palau.
(i) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section such sums as may be necessary.
TITLE II--HIGHER EDUCATION
SEC. 201. STUDENT FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE.
Effective on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, there shall be transferred to the Department of the Treasury
the functions, programs, authorities, personnel, assets, and
liabilities of the programs and activities of the Department of
Education, and the functions and authorities vested in the Secretary of
Education, under title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20
U.S.C. 1070 et seq.).
SEC. 202. HEALTH EDUCATION ASSISTANCE LOAN PROGRAM.
Effective on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, there shall be transferred to the Department of the Treasury
the functions, programs, authorities, personnel, assets, and
liabilities of the programs and activities of the Department of
Education, and the functions and authorities vested in the Secretary of
Education, under the Health Education Assistance Loan program under
title VII of the Public Health Service Act (42 U.S.C. 292 et seq.).
SEC. 203. POSTSECONDARY EDUCATION STATE BLOCK GRANT PROGRAM.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of the Treasury shall carry out a
program under which the Secretary makes allocations to States to
support postsecondary education.
(b) Allocations to States.--The allocations made by the Secretary
of Treasury to each State under this section for a fiscal year shall be
in an amount that bears the same relationship to the amount
appropriated to carry out this section for the fiscal year as the
number of students who were enrolled in postsecondary educational
institutions in the State for the previous fiscal year bears to the
number of such students in all States for the previous fiscal year.
(c) Block Grant Conditions.--As a condition of receiving a block
grant under this section, a State shall provide the Secretary of
Treasury with an assurance that the State will carry out each of the
following:
(1) Submitting student data to the Secretary of Treasury,
annually, as requested by the Secretary of Treasury and as
necessary for executing the program under this section.
(2) Completing of annual audits that conform to generally
accepted accounting principles, auditing procedures, and
safeguarding of funds that conform to chapter 75 of title 31,
United States Code (commonly known as the ``Single Audit Act of
1984'') and submitting the results of such audits to the
Secretary of Treasury.
(3) Complying with all applicable Federal civil rights
laws, including those described in section 4.
(d) Misused or Misappropriated Funds.--If the Secretary of Treasury
finds that any funds under this section have been misused or
misappropriated by the State, the Secretary of the Treasury--
(1) may require repayment of the misused funds and withhold
Federal funds under this section for the next fiscal year; or
(2) may reach a voluntary resolution agreement with that
State.
(e) Definitions.--In this section--
(1) the term ``State'' means each of the 50 States, the
District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and each
of the outlying areas; and
(2) the term ``outlying area'' means American Samoa, the
Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and the
United States Virgin Islands, the Republic of the Marshall
Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic
of Palau.
(f) Authorization of Appropriations.--There are authorized to be
appropriated to carry out this section such sums as may be necessary.
TITLE III--OTHER LAWS
SEC. 301. EDUCATION SCIENCES REFORM AND RELATED LAWS.
Effective on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, there shall be transferred to the Department of the Treasury
the functions, programs, authorities, personnel, assets, and
liabilities of the programs and activities of the Department of
Education, and the functions and authorities vested in the Secretary of
Education, under--
(1) the Education Sciences Reform Act of 2002 (20 U.S.C.
9501 et seq.);
(2) the Educational Technical Assistance Act of 2002 (20
U.S.C. 9601 et seq.); and
(3) the National Assessment of Educational Progress
Authorization Act (20 U.S.C. 9621 et seq.).
SEC. 302. CARL D. PERKINS CAREER AND TECHNICAL EDUCATION ACT OF 2006.
Effective on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, there shall be transferred to the Department of Labor the
functions, programs, authorities, personnel, assets, and liabilities of
the programs and activities of the Department of Education, and the
functions and authorities vested in the Secretary of Education, under
the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act of 2006 (20
U.S.C. 2301 et seq.).
SEC. 303. ADULT EDUCATION AND FAMILY LITERACY.
Effective on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, there shall be transferred to the Department of Labor the
functions, programs, authorities, personnel, assets, and liabilities of
the programs and activities of the Department of Education, and the
functions and authorities vested in the Secretary of Education, under
the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (title II of the Workforce
Innovation and Opportunity Act (29 U.S.C. 3271 et seq.)).
SEC. 304. IDEA.
Effective on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, there shall be transferred to the Department of Health and
Human Services the functions, programs, authorities, personnel, assets,
and liabilities of the programs and activities of the Department of
Education, and the functions and authorities vested in the Secretary of
Education, under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20
U.S.C. 1400 et seq.).
SEC. 305. VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION STATE GRANTS AND OTHER ACTIVITIES
UNDER THE REHABILITATION ACT OF 1973.
Effective on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, there shall be transferred to the Department of Labor the
functions, programs, authorities, personnel, assets, and liabilities of
the programs and activities of the Department of Education, and the
functions and authorities vested in the Secretary of Education, under--
(1) title I of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C.
720 et seq.); and
(2) other provisions of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29
U.S.C. 701 et seq.) (including those of the Department of
Education under titles III, IV, V, VI, and chapter 2 of title
VII of that Act).
SEC. 306. EDUCATION OF THE DEAF ACT OF 1986.
Effective on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, there shall be transferred to the Department of Labor the
functions, programs, authorities, personnel, assets, and liabilities of
the programs and activities of the Department of Education, and the
functions and authorities vested in the Secretary of Education, under
the Education of the Deaf Act of 1986 (20 U.S.C. 4301 et seq.).
SEC. 307. RANDOLPH-SHEPPARD ACT.
Effective on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, there shall be transferred to the Department of Labor the
functions, programs, authorities, personnel, assets, and liabilities of
the programs and activities of the Department of Education, and the
functions and authorities vested in the Secretary of Education, under
the Act entitled ``An Act to authorize the operation of stands in
Federal buildings by blind persons, to enlarge the economic
opportunities of the blind, and for other purposes'', approved June 20,
1936 (20 U.S.C. 107 et seq.)(commonly referred to as the ``Randolph-
Sheppard Act'').
SEC. 308. HELEN KELLER NATIONAL CENTER ACT.
Effective on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, there shall be transferred to the Department of Labor the
functions, programs, authorities, personnel, assets, and liabilities of
the programs and activities of the Department of Education, and the
functions and authorities vested in the Secretary of Education, under
the Helen Keller National Center Act (29 U.S.C. 1901 et seq.).
SEC. 309. SPECIAL OLYMPICS SPORT AND EMPOWERMENT ACT OF 2004.
Effective on the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of
this Act, there shall be transferred to t