House bill would transfer K-12 and college programs from Education Department to Labor Department

A House Republican bill would move oversight of K-12 and higher education programs from the Education Department to the Labor Department. The package contains two measures, the “Less Bureaucracy, Better K-12 Education” act and the “Less Bureaucracy, Better Higher Education” act. Both were introduced Thursday by Rep. Mark Harris (R-NC).

Program transfers The bills would shift the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Office of Postsecondary Education to the Labor Department. Staff, funding, and other resources would move with the programs. The legislation does not alter the programs themselves.

Legislative context The two bills form part of a 10-bill effort by the House Committee on Education and the Workforce. Committee Chairman Tim Walberg (R-MI) said the package aims to place responsibilities with agencies better positioned to administer them. Harris said the shift is intended to reduce federal bureaucracy while supporting students and families.

Prior actions The Education Department has already transferred some responsibilities through interagency agreements. Fourteen such agreements have been signed, moving functions to other departments without congressional action. The new bills would place one of those agreements into statute, making future reversal more difficult.