93 Education, Civil Rights, and Disability Organizations’ Joint Statement in Opposition to Legislation to Provide Cover to the Administration’s Illegal Dismantling of the Department of Education

93 organizations strongly oppose the package of IAA bills set to be marked up in the House Education and Workforce Committee this week

July 14, 2026 by EdTrust
Public Statement

93 Education, Civil Rights, and Disability Organizations’ Joint Statement in Opposition to Legislation to Provide Cover to the Administration’s Illegal Dismantling of the Department of Education

We, the undersigned 93 education, civil rights, and disability organizations, strongly oppose the package of bills scheduled for markup this week (HR 9602-9611) in the Committee on Education & Workforce that would provide wrongful cover for the Trump administration’s dismantling of the Department of Education. Congress established the Department nearly 50 years ago to provide focused and expert support for our nation’s schools and students and as a national commitment to high quality education for all. We urge the Committee to reject these bills.

For more than a year, the Trump administration has worked to illegally dismantle the Department of Education. These efforts, effectuated through the unprecedented and unauthorized use of Interagency Agreements to transfer education programs after the mass firing of thousands of staff, have created chaos and confusion for states, districts, and schools providing public education to P-12 students across the country, and needlessly increased bureaucracy for students, families, school districts, and institutions of higher education.

Dismantling the Department comes over the objections of parents, students, and educators throughout the country, who continue to reject the efforts to politicize our nation’s classrooms at the expense of our students’ future, and of Congress itself, which has also consistently signaled its opposition to these actions on a bipartisan basis. The legislative branch rejected the administration’s prior request to deeply cut federal education funding; maintained existing prohibitions on reprogramming and transferring funds in the Fiscal Year 2026 spending deal; and included report language supported by both parties and signed into law by the current president stating there is “no authority” for the administration to transfer these programs to other federal agencies.

We urge the Committee to reject these misguided bills and to instead exercise their oversight authority over the executive branch, and align with Congressional majorities in rejecting the dismantlement of the Department of Education. The American people support public education and want their leaders to focus on improving educational opportunity, not dissolving the agency tasked with that very mission.

Signed,

AACTE (American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education)
ACTFL
AFL-CIO
AFSCME
AFT: Education, Healthcare, Public Services
All4Ed
Alliance for Children’s Rights
Alliance for Quality Education
Alliance to Reclaim Our Schools
American Association of University Women (AAUW)
American Civil Liberties Union
American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 252
Asian Americans Advancing Justice – AAJC
Association of Education Service Agencies (AESA)
California State Student Association
Californians Together
Center for American Progress
Center for Applied Linguistics
Center for Black Educator Development
Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP)
Center for Strong Public Schools
Chiefs for Change
Citizen Action of New York
Clearinghouse on Women’s Issues
Coalition on Human Needs
Complete College America
Council for Exceptional Children
Council of Administrators of Special Education
Council of the Great City Schools
Diverse Charter Schools Coalition
Education Justice Alliance
Educational Theatre Association
Educators for Excellence
EdTrust
Equal Justice Society
Equal Rights Advocates
Family Voices – NJ
Feminist Majority
First Focus Campaign for Children
Formerly Incarcerated College Graduates Network
Glisten
Higher Education Consortium for Special Education (HECSE)
Honesty for Ohio Education
Illinois Families for Public Schools
InnovateEDU
Institute for Educational Leadership
Institute for Higher Education Policy (IHEP)

Jewish Council for Public Affairs
Joint National Committee for Languages
Know Your IX at Advocates for Youth
League of Education Voters Foundation
National Alliance for Partnerships in Equity
National Art Education Association
National Association for College Admission Counseling
National Association for Family, School and Community Engagement (NAFSCE)
National Association for Media Arts Education
National Association for Music Education
National Association of School Psychologists
National Black Justice Collective
National Center for Learning Disabilities
National Center for Youth Law
National College Attainment Network
National Consumer Law Center (on behalf of its low-income clients)
National Council for Languages and International Studies
National Council for the Social Studies
National Council of Jewish Women
National Council on Teacher Quality
National Down Syndrome Congress (NDSC)
National Education Association
National Parents Union
National PLACE
National Principals Association
National School Boards Association
National Urban League
New America, Higher Education Program
Protect Borrowers
Public Advocacy for Kids (PAK)
Service Employees International Union (SEIU)
SHAPE America – Society of Health and Physical Educators
SPAN Parent Advocacy Network
Stop Sexual Assault in Schools
Students Engaged in Advancing Texas (SEAT)
The Arc of the United States
The Center for Learner Equity
The Education Neuroscience Foundation
The Global Institute for Language and Literacy Development
The Hope Center for Student Basic Needs
The Institute for College Access & Success
The Title IV-A Coalition
Tulalip Office of Civil Legal Aid
UnidosUS
University of California Student Association (UCSA)
Young Invincibles