According to K-12 Dive, on May 8, 2025 the end of E-rate eligibility for Wi-Fi hotspots came one step closer as the Senate voted 50-38 along party lines to overturn a 2024 expansion of the program overseen by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

A similar House resolution was introduced in February to strike down the recent inclusion of Wi-Fi hotspots in the E-rate program, which has helped connect schools and libraries to affordable telecommunications services for the last 29 years.

In fiscal year 2025, schools and school districts requested a total of $27.5 million for Wi-Fi hotspots alone, which are often used to help students who don’t have home internet access complete homework assignments that require digital connections.

The FCC’s decision to expand E-rate to include hotspots followed the expiration of the Emergency Connectivity Fund established by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. The pandemic-era fund allocated $123 million to the FCC to purchase hotspots for schools and libraries.

Both Senate and House measures were introduced by Republicans who say the FCC’s partisan move under the Biden administration to expand the E-rate program was overreach under the federal law.

In a related issue, a survey shows that a 74% of school districts report the loss of the E-rate program would have a “catastrophic” or “major” impact if the U.S. Supreme Court rules that the federal broadband discount for schools and libraries is unconstitutional. A ruling in that case is expected this term.

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In March 2025, the Southern Poverty Law Center, the National Center for Youth Law and the Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates filed suit on behalf of the students and parents in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in March. The lawsuit asked for a permanent reversal of the department’s cuts to its Office for Civil Rights (OCR).

Subsequently, on May 5, 2025 the groups filed a motion for a preliminary injunction against OCR over its reduced enforcement capacity, asking that it be temporarily restored while the lawsuit is pending. The motion cites the U.S. Department of Education’s (USDE) decision to cut OCR by half and says the agency has “functionally ended the processing of scores of complaints.” Plaintiffs are asking the courts to block current USDE civil rights investigation and enforcement policies that they say are allowing racial harassment, restraint and seclusion of students with disabilities, and other kinds of harassment and discrimination to go unchecked.

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According to K-12 Dive, the Trump Administration’s FY 2026 proposed budget would turn Title I and IDEA into single, separate grants, zero out key teacher grants, and add $60 million for charter schools.

The deep cuts would hit programs meant to ensure equitable access to education for underserved students and to protect their civil rights. Also, though maintained at current funding levels, Title I and special education programs would be reorganized into separate single grants aimed at letting states spend the money as they see fit.

Among the cuts are the following:
-All $70 million for Teacher Quality Partnerships grant, often used to diversify the teacher workforce.
-All $7 million for Equity Assistance Centers, established as part of desegregation efforts.
-All $890 million for English Language Acquisition.
-A $49 million, or 35%, reduction for the Office for Civil Rights. 

At the same time, Trump’s budget would boost funding for charter schools by $60 million.

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On May 2, 2025, the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) confirmed to K-12 Dive that it will not renew $1 billion in grants that were initially awarded to school districts nationwide to improve students’ well-being by placing more mental health professionals in schools. The shutting off of federal grant funding comes as schools nationwide work to address and recover from the lingering student mental health crisis that the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated.

According to the USDE, the funds for more school mental health professionals were discontinued due to “conflict” with Trump administration priorities.

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