On March 15, President Biden signed into law the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2022, providing funding for the activities of the federal government for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2022, and securing historic support for the Ukrainian people (White House fact sheet and Secretary Cardona’s statement).
In the $1.5 trillion omnibus funding agreement is $76.4 billion in discretionary spending for the Department of Education, an increase of $2.9 billion over the Fiscal Year 2021 level. Among the highlights: $17.5 billion for Title I grants to school districts (+$1 billion), $13.3 billion for special education grants to states (+$406 million), $1.38 billion for career and technical education state grants (+$45 million), and an increase in the maximum Pell Grant by $400, to $6,895, for the 2022-23 academic year.
Notably, among the Administration’s priorities, there is $111 million for school mental health grants (+$90 million) and $75 million for full-service community schools (+$45 million).
The bill also includes $3 billion for higher education, with $885 million for minority-serving institutions (+$96 million) (specifically, $363 million for Historically Black Colleges and Universities [HBCUs], $183 million for Hispanic-Serving Institutions [HSIs], and $44 million for Tribal Colleges and Universities [TCUs]), $1.1 billion for TRIO programs (+$40 million), and $378 million for the GEAR UP program (+$10 million). Plus, there is $65 million for the competitive Child Care Access Means Parents in School program (+$10 million).
“Today, we’re again showing the American people that, as a country, we can come together as Democrats, Republicans, and independents and do big things,” President Biden emphasized at the signing ceremony (remarks). “Our democracy can deliver and outperform autocracies, and there’s nothing we can’t do when we do it together as the United States of America.”
Content from Ed Review: DOE’s bi-weekly email update
