On Friday, the Trump Administration released its 2027 budget request which notably boosts defense spending 44% to $1.5 trillion yet cuts non-defense spending 10% compared to 2026 non-defense spending levels. In a message to Congress, Office of Management and Budget Director Russell T. Vought notes that the 2027 budget request “continues the Department of Education’s path to elimination, returning control of education back to America’s families.”
The Trump Administration is requesting $76.5 billion in discretionary budget authority for the Department of Education for 2027, a $2.3 billion or 2.9% reduction from 2026 Department of Education spending levels.
A number of education stakeholders have responded to the particulars of the budget request. In a statement, The Education Trust said, “EdTrust opposes the highly damaging cuts put forth by the Trump administration in its most recent budget proposal. The administration’s budget remains unsurprisingly fixated on its unlawful efforts to eliminate the Department of Education, which Congress has repeatedly stated they have ‘no authority’ to do.”
Jessica Thompson, interim president and executive vice president for The Institute for College Access & Succes said in a statement, “The administration’s budget request is yet another out-of-touch proposal to defund effective higher education programs that have long had bipartisan support.”
Thompson added, "While we appreciate the administration’s proposal to shore up Pell Grant funding, it comes alongside harmful proposals to slash the Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE), cut support for Minority-Serving Institutions, and dismantle the Education Department. We continue to urge Congress to fully fund the Pell Grant program and to reject the administration’s proposed cuts and stop its attempts to shutter the Education Department."
Kim Cook, CEO of the National College Attainment Network (NCAN), applauds the Trump Administration’s 2027 budget request for fully funding the Pell Grant program, “including fixing the immediate shortfall. Fully funding Pell shows the impact of NCAN members around the country, who have been tireless in their efforts to highlight the value of Pell for their students, its importance for workforce development, and for state and local economic growth.”
In a statement, Cook adds that the Trump Administration’s 2027 budget request “is a good start, but NCAN urges Congress to go further and increase the maximum Pell Grant by $200. A fourth year of a flat maximum grant is a cut in real terms, for students facing rising costs for housing, food and transportation expenses, even as net tuition has declined.”
