DeVos, Democrats spar over block grants, charter schools

Democrats on a House appropriations panel took aim Thursday at the Trump administration's fiscal 2021 Education Department budget plan, warning Secretary Betsy DeVos that many of its proposals won't become law.

The Feb. 10 budget proposal, which would request $66.6 billion — a 7.8 percent cut from fiscal 2020 appropriated levels — garnered universal disapproval from Democrats and some pushback from a key Republican on the Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations Subcommittee.

“You are seeking to privatize public education,” said subcommittee Chairwoman Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn. “With all sincerity, this is not going to happen.”

Many questions focused on DeVos’ proposal to combine 29 elementary and secondary education programs into a single $19.4 billion state block grant program. Members on both sides of the aisle expressed concern that some programs, such as the TRIO program and the Charter Schools Program, would be jeopardized.

“While I tend to support block grants to states…I do have some concerns with consolidating some programs such as the Charter School Program,” said ranking member Tom Cole, R-Okla. “There’s a risk here that some states are welcoming to charter schools, others frankly are not.”