March 22-25

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Executive Orders

Throughout his first year in office, President Trump signed a number of Executive Orders relating to education and workforce development:  

  • School Choice Expansion (Jan. 29)
    Directs federal agencies to expand and prioritize school choice initiatives, including charter schools and alternative education models, which could influence how CTE programs are delivered and accessed within K–12 systems. 
  • Elimination of DEI Programs and Initiatives (Multiple Orders)
    Rescinds federal diversity, equity, and inclusion requirements and funding preferences across agencies and education programs, potentially affecting targeted supports, student services and workforce pipeline initiatives connected to CTE participation and access. 
  • Dismantling the Department of Education ED (March 20)
    Initiates the process of dismantling the U.S. Department of Education and redistributing its functions, creating significant uncertainty for federal oversight, funding administration, and accountability mechanisms tied to Perkins and other CTE-related programs. 
  • Accreditation Reform (April 23)
    Reforms the federal higher education accreditation system to emphasize outcomes, value and workforce relevance, with direct implications for postsecondary CTE programs, credential quality and alignment with labor market needs. 
  • Apprenticeships and Workforce Strategy (April 23)
    Establishes a federal workforce strategy focused on expanding apprenticeships and employer-driven training pathways, reinforcing the role of CTE as a primary pipeline for skilled trades and middle-skill occupations. 
  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Workforce Development (April 23)
    Promotes the integration of artificial intelligence education and skills training across K–12, postsecondary, and workforce systems, elevating demand for updated CTE curricula aligned with emerging technologies. 
  • Creating a Policy Framework for AI (Dec. 11)
    Orders the establishment of a federal AI Litigation Task Force to challenge conflicting state AI laws and directs federal evaluations and conditions on funding to support a unified national AI policy framework. 

Inter-Agency Agreements

In March 2025, ED reduced its workforce through a series of reductions in force (RIFs). This move aligned with the Trump administration’s broader agenda to streamline federal operations, reduce government spending and ultimately eliminate the Department of Education. The layoffs have impacted various departments within the agency, potentially affecting the delivery of educational services nationwide. 

Subsequently in June 2025, ED signed an Interagency Agreement (IAA) with the Department of Labor (DOL). The IAA transferred the administration of CTE funding from the Office of Career Technical and Adult Education (OCTAE) with ED to DOL.  

On Nov. 18, the administration announced additional IAA’s impacting other agencies: 

  • The Office of Elementary and Secondary Education programs and the Office of Postsecondary Education institution-based programs moved to DOL. 
  • The administration of Indian Education programs moved to the Department of the Interior. 
  • The administration of International Education and Foreign Language programs moved to the Department of State. 
  • Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS) and Foreign Medical Accreditation moved to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

And additional IAAs were announced in February as well, moving Section 117 foreign gift reporting to the Department of State and family engagement and school support programs to the Department of Health and Human Services.

Resources

Other Issues

PRWORA

In July, ED announced a Notice of Interpretation related to the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation (PRWORA). The notice is in response to the President’s February 19, 2025, Executive Order (EO) 14218, “Ending Taxpayer Subsidization of Open Borders.” It reiterates existing legal requirements regarding the availability of “public benefits” for U.S. citizens and non-exempted nonresidents and advances a new legal interpretation that many postsecondary education programs, including postsecondary programs or activities funded by the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act (Perkins V), fall under the purview of the PRWORA. At this time, it does not appear that K-12 programs are impacted, although additional guidance is delayed as the Notice of Interpretation is tied up in court cases.  

 

America’s Talent Strategy

On Aug. 12, the administration released a report through the Departments of Education, Labor and Commerce outlining their workforce talent strategy. America’s Talent Strategy: Building the Workforce for the Golden Age is a comprehensive federal workforce development blueprint. The report identifies five core pillars:  

  • Industry-Driven Strategies  
  • Worker Mobility  
  • Integrated Systems  
  • Accountability  
  • Flexibility & Innovation  

The pillars are intended to guide federal and state efforts in expanding employer-led training (including apprenticeships), improving credential transparency, streamlining and unifying workforce programs, tying funding to measurable outcomes, and fostering adaptability in the face of rapid economic transformation.  

Background

Congress operates under a fiscal year that runs from October 1 – September 30. The federal budget process usually begins each February when the president submits the Administration’s budget request to Congress. This request is not binding, but it serves to outline the Administration’s funding priorities for the coming fiscal year and Congress may use it as a blueprint in crafting its own budget.   

 

The House and Senate Budget Committees are responsible for developing the congressional budget. These committees study the president’s proposals, along with requests from other committees and Members of Congress and put together their own “budget resolution.” The budget resolution sets a “spending ceiling” for each broad budget category. There are 17 major categories for which the Budget Committees recommend spending ceilings. CTE and workforce development programs are part of the category known as “Function 500 – Education, Training, Employment, and Social Services.” The budget resolution has no binding authority over specific program funding levels, but the higher the total funding levels in the budget resolution, the higher the likelihood of increases for programs such as Perkins, HEA, WIOA and ESSA.   

 

Once the budget resolution has been agreed upon and passed by both chambers of Congress, the House and Senate Appropriations Committees begin the work of setting specific funding levels for individual programs, including Perkins, through appropriations bills. The 12 annual appropriations bills are designated to subcommittees within the appropriations committees. Funding decisions concerning CTE, other education programs and workforce development are made in the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies.   

 

If approved at the committee level, the funding bills are then considered by the full House and Senate, with any differences between the two versions reconciled by a conference committee. Often many of the larger and more controversial appropriations bills are not completed on time, and Congress must pass a “continuing resolution” (CR) to continue program funding at current levels until a new appropriations bill can be passed.   

Current Status

After a lengthy government shutdown and two continuing resolutions (CR), Congress passed a six-bill minibus in February that included funding for the Department of Education (ED).  

 

For Fiscal Year (FY) 2026, ED will be funded at $79 billion, which is approximately $217 million above FY 2025 levels. The Perkins State Grant was level funded, as was the Perkins National programs line item. 

 

Most other education programs in the bill were also level funded, a significant victory after both the Administration and House had proposed steep cuts earlier this year. The bill maintains funding for the maximum Pell Grant at $7,395 for the 2026-2027 academic year. It also maintains funding for Title I of the Every Student Succeeds Act at approximately $18.4 billion, and for adult education programs. 

 

At the Department of Labor, the bill provides $285 million to support the implementation of the Executive Order (EO), “Preparing Americans High-Paying Skilled Trade Jobs of the Future,” which sets the goal of surpassing one million new active apprentices. 

 

Now the process shifts to FY 2027 with appropriators in both the House and Senate beginning their work on drafting appropriations bills. 

Resources

Background

In July, Congress passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Included in the bill was a provision expanding Pell Grant access to short-term programs. To be eligible for Workforce Pell, programs must meet several requirements outlined in the bill, including the following:

  • Be between eight and 15 weeks, covering 150 to 599 clock hours of instruction
  • Have a completion rate of at least 70% within 150% of the normal time to completion
  • Have a job placement rate of at least 70% measured 180 days after completion
  • Have costs that do not exceed the median value-added earnings of graduates
  • Align with high-skill, high-wage or in-demand industry sectors

Current Status

In December, the Department of Education (ED) convened a negotiated rulemaking committee to discuss implementation of Workforce Pell, which will lead to guidance from ED on implementation.  The  Accountability in Higher Education and Access through Demand-driven Workforce Pell (AHEAD) committee discussed a variety of issues. At the end of the week, the committee recommended the following rules to govern implementation: 

  • Job Placement: Initially, placement rates will be based on the percentage of students employed during the second quarter after exiting the program. Under the proposed rule, starting in 2028-29, the rate will include only students employed in an occupation related to the program or a comparable high-skill, high-wage or in-demand occupation. 
  • Limits on Outsourcing: Institutions cannot outsource more than 25% of programs to an ineligible institution or organization. This proposed rule would bar an institution from acting as a pass-through for an unaccredited provider. 
  • State-by-State Agreements: This proposal allows for bilateral agreements between states to allow learners to access programs across jurisdictions. This will help learners who may need to cross state lines in order to complete their program. 
  • Connection with Registered Apprenticeship: The proposed rule would enable instruction related to Registered Apprenticeships to count toward Workforce Pell. 
  • Credit Transfer Policies: A student who has completed a Workforce Pell-eligible program and subsequently enrolled in a related certificate or degree program must receive academic credit for the Workforce Pell program. The committee proposed a clarification on the types of written policies that will govern this provision, including established articulation agreements, transfer-of-credit agreements, consortium or partnership agreements, or similar arrangements. 
  • Loss of Eligibility: A school that loses eligibility may not reestablish the failing program or establish a “substantially similar” program for two years. The committee proposed that “substantially similar” include programs with the same 4-digit Classification of Instructional Program (CIP) code. 

 

The next step in the implementation process will be the release of draft regulations through the federal register, which will then be open for public comment. Technically, Workforce Pell is set to become available on July 1, 2026, but many states have expressed that few programs will be eligible initially.  

Resources

Background

The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) is the primary federal legislation governing federal workforce development programs. It is designed to help job seekers access employment, education, training, and support services to succeed in the labor market and to match employers with the skilled workers they need to compete in the global economy.

 

The latest reauthorization, signed into law in 2014, emphasized increased coordination and cohesion among federal workforce development programs, including Perkins, instead of them working independent of one another. They accomplished this by aligning the language of definitions, requiring that postsecondary CTE institutions be a local infrastructure partner, and giving states the option to do a combined state plan that meets the planning requirements for WIOA’s core programs and at least one other federal program, among others. WIOA superseded the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 and amended the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act, the Wagner-Peyser Act, and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.    

Current Status

Programs under WIOA were authorized through FY 2020, which means they expired starting October 1, 2020, although they remain funded through the appropriations process. Both parties in Congress have acknowledged the importance of WIOA programs and expressed desire to reauthorize the legislation. At the end of last Congress, leaders of the House Education and Workforce Committee and the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee reached a bipartisan deal on WIOA reauthorization and included a modified version of H.R. 6655, A Stronger Workforce for America Act, in the original draft of the continuing resolution (CR) to keep the government funded. The bill would have comprehensively reauthorized WIOA and made significant changes to core aspects including eligible training provider lists. Ultimately, however, WIOA reauthorization was removed from the CR at the last minute.  

 

At the start of the 119th Congress, House Education and Workforce Chair Tim Walberg (R-MI) expressed interest in reviving WIOA reauthorization this Congress, but not much progress has been made to date. If lawmakers were to introduce a WIOA reauthorization bill, it is likely that it will be similar to the previously agreed upon version or start over on a new comprehensive WIOA reauthorization.   

Resources

Background

The National Apprenticeship Act (NAA) is a federal law that authorizes registered apprenticeship programs.   Apprentice programs in the U.S. were largely unregulated until 1934. After passage of the National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA), industry, trade unions and the National Recovery Administration cooperated to fashion various “industry codes” to govern competition, wages, working conditions and quality of products and services.     

 

In 1937, the Congress passed the National Apprenticeship Act, also known as “the Fitzgerald Act.” The Act established a national advisory committee whose task was to research and draft regulations to establish minimum standards for apprenticeship programs. The Act was later amended to permit the United States Department of Labor to issue regulations protecting the health, safety and general welfare of apprentices, and to encourage the use of contracts in the hiring and employment of them. The National Apprenticeship Act is administered by the Employment and Training Administration in the Department of Labor, but the underlying statute has not been significantly updated in years.  

Current Status

Little progress has been made on a reauthorization in the 119th Congress.  In the prior Congress, Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) introduced the National Apprenticeship Act of 2023. This bill would have provided resources for small- and medium-sized employers to develop their own apprenticeship programs, create rural demonstration grants for low-density areas with labor shortages, streamline the apprenticeship application process and provide resources for program sponsors to attract participants with employment and populations that have not-traditionally enrolled in apprenticeship programs.  

 

After receiving criticism from other organizations, progress on this bill halted. Negotiations have stalled in 2026, but advocates are still pushing for a comprehensive reauthorization. 

Resources

Background

Throughout the country, K-12 schools have been reporting concerning levels of staff shortages across virtually every subject area, including and especially CTE. While the pandemic certainly exacerbated this issue, the root causes of the national teacher shortage are longstanding and systemic. In many schools, low teacher pay makes it difficult to recruit and retain staff; however, this is particularly challenging for CTE teachers who can often make two to three times more money working directly in the industries they teach. Further, problems such as teacher licensure, limited school resources and difficult working conditions have caused many teachers to consider leaving the classroom or may prevent prospective teachers from entering the classroom at all. While these shortages are widespread, they impact low-income, rural and communities of color at disproportionate rates.    

 

The federal government plays a very limited role in the K-12 education system, but there is still significant opportunity to affect change. In previous years, there has been action taken to address the teacher pipeline. The Biden-Harris Administration focused on alleviating teacher shortages by leveraging public-private partnerships, encouraging the registration of teacher residency programs as apprenticeships with the Department of Labor, and proposing additional funding to federal programs such as the Teacher Quality Partnership Grant, the Hawkins Centers for Excellence, and Every Student Succeeds Act Title I grants to local education agencies.    

 

Throughout the first year of the Trump Administration, the Department of Education (ED) has not laid out any priorities on addressing teacher shortages. 

 

In previous years, ACTE has endorsed a number of teacher workforce bills: the RAISE Act, the RETAIN Act and the Loan Forgiveness for Educators Act most notably. Both the RAISE Act and RETAIN Act would provide a federal income tax credit for all public K-12 teachers. The Loan Forgiveness for Educators Act would extend the Teacher Loan Forgiveness program to all teacher subjects. None of these bills have received any actions with their relevant committees.    

 

Importantly, Congress has not proposed many solutions for the postsecondary CTE faculty shortage. These shortages are widespread, however, there is no federally collected data to measure them. Postsecondary CTE faculty shortages can lead to program closures, which exacerbate workforce shortages and lead to decreased opportunities for learners.    

 

There was one key win for the CTE teacher pipeline late last Congress. Just before adjourning for the year, Congress managed a huge victory for CTE teachers and other public sector worker when they passed the Social Security Fairness Act, H.R. 82.   

 

This action marked the culmination of decades of advocacy to repeal the Government Pension Offset (GPO) and Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) within the Social Security program. These provisions unfairly reduced Social Security benefits, including spousal benefits, for those who worked in private sector jobs and paid into Social Security, but also worked in a public sector job and earned a pension, depending on how the retirement system was structured in a state. They were particularly problematic for CTE teachers in about 15 states because many of our teachers work in the private sector before transitioning to teaching later in their careers. It made it even more difficult to recruit CTE teachers in these states because they faced losing their already earned Social Security benefits.  

  

The bill that was passed completely eliminates these provisions, which should restore Social Security benefits for anyone who meets other eligibility criteria but had suffered a reduction or elimination of their monthly payment because of GPO or WEP.  

Current Status

The teacher pipeline has not received much attention in the 119th Congress, but some lawmakers are re-introducing legislation that they worked on during the previous Congress. So far, Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Jahana Hayes have re-introduced the RAISE Act, which ACTE has endorsed once again. It is not likely though that this bill will receive a vote by either the House or Senate.

Resources

Monday

Storytelling as CTE Advocacy: Capturing a Century on Film  

Looking Back, Looking Ahead: 100 Years of CTE Advocacy in Action  

 

Where is the Action? The Intersections of Federal and State Policy 

Wednesday

Executive Branch Updates: The Latest on Regulatory and Administration Activity 

  • Adam Flynn-Tabloff; Director – Policy, Research, and Evaluation; U.S. Department of Education Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education
    Adam Flynn-Tabloff is a results-driven executive currently serving as the Director of Policy, Research, and Evaluation at the U.S. Department of Education. He has extensive experience in education leadership, operations management, and strategic planning, having previously held roles such as Director at Wm. M. Davies Jr. Career & Technical High School and Assistant Director there from 2010 to 2016. Adam also contributes to academia as an Adjunct Professor in Educational Measurement at SCE | Providence College School of Continuing Education.

 

Implementing Federal Policy  

 

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