A year and a half into the Trump presidency, the administration has, through the coordinated actions of the Great American Heist, instituted a wide variety of harmful programs that will undermine students’ futures.

Federal education funding remains under threat for K-12 education, and more generous student loan repayment plans are being eliminated, even as families lose eligibility for Medicaid and SNAP. Increased immigration enforcement, including on and near school grounds, has led to drops in attendance and reduced test scores. Layoffs and office closures at the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights have resulted in thousands of complaints being ignored, and no positive resolutions for racial discrimination, disability discrimination or sexual assault being reached in all of 2025. Overhanging it all, a new federal voucher tax credit will steer billions away from public schools and the majority of students they serve, while putting in hard caps on federal graduate loans will limit students’ ability to pay for their education.

All of this leaves America’s students — particularly Black and Latino students and those from low-income backgrounds — facing more obstacles to achieving their full potential, instead of receiving the supports they need to thrive.

There are urgent threats to America’s students at both the K-12 and higher education levels. America’s unique democratic system means many important policy decisions, particularly those around education, are made at the state and local levels. This means that, although there is no replacement for strong civil rights enforcement and robust, equitable education funding from the federal government, state lawmakers can, in some places, step in to fill the gap. EdTrust’s State Action Guides for K-12 and higher ed provide important background and concrete steps state lawmakers can take to combat these federal challenges.

Not all of the bills discussed below have, or will, become law, but it’s important to highlight where — and how — states are fighting back against the Great American Heist.

Increasing Education Funding

A worsening economy, lower tax revenues, and reduced federal funding are leaving state legislators with tighter budgets. Despite these constraints, many are proposing increased funding for schools.

Mississippi lawmakers, for instance, are increasing K-12 funding by $121 million over last year, with pay increases for teachers and funding for literacy and math initiatives, while Connecticut lawmakers raised funding by an average of 4% per district, and funded universal school breakfast alongside new mental health supports and literacy coaches.

Others are taking a more direct approach: New Hampshire lawmakers are seeking to increase funding for special education in districts with particularly high costs, while Oklahoma is boosting teacher salaries.

At the higher education level, Alaska lawmakers replenished $130 million to the state’s Higher Education Investment Fund, which provides need- and merit-based scholarships. Meanwhile, Virginia lawmakers are proposing increased funding for workforce credentials, career and technical programs, and need-based financial aid. In Missouri, lawmakers are considering a bill that would direct funding from gambling taxes to the state’s two historically Black colleges.

Protecting Access to Nutrition Programs

More than 1 million college students rely on SNAP to meet their basic nutrition needs, and more than 2 million others meet the criteria but can’t access benefits. In Illinois, advocates are pushing for three bills to sustain access to the state’s SNAP programs, including a one-time payment to families, expanded eligibility for immigrants, and the creation of a working group to track federal changes and develop ways to help Illinois residents.

Protecting Students From Immigrant Backgrounds

Illinois lawmakers last year passed the Safe Schools for All Act, which codifies students’ right to a public education regardless of immigration status and requires school districts and college campuses to develop plans for responding to immigration enforcement on campus. It went into effect Jan. 1.

In Oregon, the governor recently signed legislation that bans discrimination based on immigration status in schools. This legislation also expands guidance for how schools should respond to immigration enforcement on or near campuses.

Ensuring Students’ Civil Rights

In Pennsylvania, a state House member is drafting a bill that would require the state Department of Education to take over enforcement of education civil rights provisions.

And in Colorado, legislators introduced two bills to protect students’ civil rights. One would require the state Civil Rights Division to enforce laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race in K-12 schools and colleges, and the other would allow the state’s Department of Education to address complaints when schools aren’t following 504 plans that codify accommodations for students with disabilities.

Federal Voucher Tax Credit

State lawmakers have responded in various ways. In Colorado, for instance, legislation has been proposed that would require schools participating in the federal program to abide by existing laws protecting LGBTQ+ students. Elsewhere, like in Illinois and Vermont, lawmakers have proposed bills to block their states from participating in the federal program.

The federal program would exist alongside state voucher programs. In response, some state lawmakers are tightening eligibility and adding other requirements to their own programs.

A bipartisan group of lawmakers in Ohio has proposed limiting the state’s voucher program to families earning less than $500,000 a year. In Florida, which has the largest voucher program in the country, lawmakers proposed new regulations to crack down on overspending and institute more oversight and accountability. In Oklahoma, lawmakers have proposed requiring students at participating private schools to take state assessments.

These actions, though important, can’t make up for the losses imposed by the Great American Heist. It will take families, advocates, and state legislators working together to limit the impact of this theft on students in the short term and to restore the country to one that strives to provide equitable opportunities, rather than limit them.

At EdTrust, we’re proud to support state advocates and lawmakers, through advocacy, research, and guidance like our State Action Guides, in their efforts to advance more equitable education opportunities for all students, no matter what’s happening at the federal level.

State Action Guides

K-12 State Action Guide

Higher Education State Action Guide

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