In alignment with the new Administration’s agenda to streamline federal programs and cut federal spending, last Friday, the White House released the Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 Budget Request to inform Congress’ work on annual appropriations. The ‘Skinny Budget,’ as described by the White House, includes a 46-page outline of proposed increases, reductions, and consolidations to programs in each federal agency. Prepared by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), the FY 2026 Budget provides proposed funding levels for top-line education, justice, health, and other federal programs but does not provide budget details for each program. For example, under the U.S. Department of Education (ED), OMB proposes to “preserve Title I and streamline K-12 programs” in a “K-12 Simplified Funding Program” which in total is cut by $4.5 billion from FY 2025 and would consolidate 18 competitive and formula grant programs into a new formula grant. Similarly, the “Special Education Simplified Funding Program” remains level funded [from FY 2025] and proposes to “consolidate” seven Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) programs into one. The Charter School Program would be plussed up by $60 million, and ED’s Office for Civil Rights would be cut by $49 million. With an overall cut to the education budget of 15.3 percent, other big losers are Adult Education ($729 million cut), the elimination of TRIO and GearUP -which serve as access programs to college for low-income children and children with disabilities- as well as the elimination of the Teacher Quality Partnership (TQP) grants for new teachers. Regarding the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) the President is proposing a 26.2 percent cut overall. Specific cuts at HHS include the elimination of the preschool development grant ($315 million) and is silent on Head Start and the programs authorized under the Developmental Disabilities Act (e.g., State Councils on Developmental Disabilities, University Centers for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities (UCEDDS), and Protection and Advocacy Systems (P&As)) which were all rumored to be eliminated in the week leading up to the budget release. Finally, the Department of Justice (DOJ) budget includes a $1.1 billion reduction that would eliminate forty grant programs and proposes a $193 million cut to the Civil Rights Division which is responsible for disability rights investigations under the ADA and Section 504. 

While the budget does not include any details beyond these brief descriptors, in terms of process, the proposal is a required step that puts the priorities of the sitting President in front of Congress. It is now up to House and Senate appropriators to determine whether -and to what extent- to include the funding recommendations as they negotiate spending bills over the coming months. House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole (R-OK) responded favorably and said he “could work with it,” whereas Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins (R-ME) said she had “serious objections.”