January 15, 2025
Mrs. Hayes (for herself, Ms. Adams, Ms. Titus, Mrs. McIver, Ms. Salinas, Ms. Tokuda, and Mr. Quigley) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and Workforce
To prohibit funds made available to the Department of Education by previous Appropriations Acts from being used for any activity relating to implementing a reorganization of the Department, and for other purposes.
Section 1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the Department of Education Protection Act
.
Sec. 2. Findings
Congress finds the following:
(1)
Congress has a fundamental role in shaping and reshaping the Federal agency landscape, including by—
(A)
providing oversight;
(B)
creating, structuring, and locating offices;
(C)
delegating specific or general missions, powers, duties, and functions to offices and officers;
(D)
defining the parameters of personnel systems;
(E)
confirming the leadership of an agency;
(F)
providing funding; and
(G)
evaluating whether or not an agency shall continue in existence.
(2)
The current organization of the Department of Education is designed to promote student achievement and equal access to education, including through the following offices and institutes of the Department:
(A)
Federal Student Aid.
(B)
The Institute of Education Sciences.
(C)
The Office of the Chief Information Officer.
(D)
The Office of Communications and Outreach.
(E)
The Office for Civil Rights.
(F)
The Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education.
(G)
The Office of the Deputy Secretary.
(H)
The Office of English Language Acquisition.
(I)
The Office of Elementary and Secondary Education.
(J)
The Office of Finance and Operations.
(K)
The Office of the General Counsel.
(L)
The Office of Inspector General.
(M)
The Office of Legislation and Congressional Affairs.
(N)
The Office of Postsecondary Education.
(O)
The Office of Planning, Evaluation and Policy Development.
(P)
The Office of the Secretary.
(Q)
The Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
(R)
The Office of the Under Secretary.
Sec. 3. Prohibiting use of appropriated funds to reorganize Department of Education
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, none of the funds made available by previous Appropriations Acts to the Department of Education for obligation or expenditure in the current fiscal year may be used for any activity relating to implementing a reorganization of the Department that decentralizes, reduces the staffing level of, or alters the responsibilities, structure, authority, or functionality of the Department, relative to the organization and operation of the Department on January 1, 2025.