South Michigan News: House committee introduces legislative package to streamline Department of Education

Education and Workforce Committee Chairman Tim Walberg announced on July 9 the introduction of 10 bills aimed at codifying the Trump administration's plan to restructure the Department of Education. The legislative package seeks to ensure that students, families, educators, and taxpayers are served by a government focused on results rather than bureaucracy.

Walberg said, "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 and stakeholders."

The proposed legislation includes H.R. 9607 (Less Bureaucracy, Better Workforce Development Act), H.R. 9610 (Less Bureaucracy, Better K-12 Education Act), H.R. 9611 (Less Bureaucracy, Better Higher Education Act), H.R. 9605 (Less Bureaucracy, Better Foreign Medical Accreditation Act), H.R. 9604 (Less Bureaucracy, Better Tribal Education Act), H.R. 9606 (Less Bureaucracy, Better Child Care for Student Parents Act), H.R. 9603 (Less Bureaucracy, Better International Education Oversight Act), H.R. 9602 (Less Bureaucracy, Better Foreign Gift Transparency Act), H.R. 9608 (Less Bureaucracy, Better Family Engagement Act), and H.R. 9609 (Less Bureaucracy, Better Student Aid Act).

Together these bills represent what Walberg described as Congress's first step toward modernizing federal education law by streamlining administration and reducing unnecessary bureaucracy while ensuring that federal responsibilities are managed by agencies best positioned to administer them.

The House Education and Workforce Committee manages federal programs concerning education, labor, health and workforce development; influences policy on issues such as student loans and worker protections; and serves in the legislative sector with jurisdiction over education and labor matters, according to the official website.

Walberg said these efforts will keep "the focus where it belongs: on students, families, and taxpayers."