Congressional Support Growing For Bill To Ban Department of Education

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) recently introduced a bill that would dissolve the federal Department of Education, a move that has gained some traction within the House of Representatives.

Massie received support from eight other members of Congress for his bill, including high-profile Republicans such as Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO), Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL), and Rep. Chip Roy (R-TX).

The bill itself is among the simplest in modern Congressional history, reading only “The Department of Education shall terminate on December 31, 2023.”

The efforts by the libertarian-leaning Republican are quickly gaining support among some of his colleagues. So far eight members of Congress have endorsed the bill.

One of the co-sponsors, Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ) previously wrote that “It is time we start reversing this trend and returning power to states and local communities who can best determine the needs of our students.”

This is also not the first time that Rep. Massie has attempted to downsize the scope of the federal government, nor is it the first time he has called for the elimination of the education department.

Massie argues that the department exists unconstitutionally and that Massie argues that the department exists unconstitutionally and that the power regarding education is best handled at the local and state level.

The Department of Education is not a particularly old part of the federal government, being created under the tenure of President Jimmy Carter in 1980.

There were previous efforts to dismantle the department starting with Carter’s successor, President Ronald Reagan. Former Department of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos said that the agency “should not exist” since her tenure during the Trump Administration.

Last year, former President Trump called for the Department of Education to be abolished.

Previous efforts to ban the department have not successfully made it through each house of Congress.

Rep. Massie’s bill to dissolve the department comes as federal spending on education spiked during the Biden Administration. The White House proposed a 41% increase in federal education spending to a new high of $103 billion.