On April 30, 2026 a bill that would ban artificial intelligence companions from interacting with children and teens received unanimous approval from the Senate Judiciary Committee and now awaits Senate floor action. The Guidelines for User Age-verification and Responsible Dialogue Act (GUARD Act), would also require age verification for all…
The U.S. Department of Education’s (USDE) Office for Civil Rights (OCR) reached resolution agreements with schools and colleges in only 1% of pending cases in 2025, the lowest percentage from any OCR in over the last decade, according to a recent report from U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders, I-Vt. The report…
A group of House Republicans are seeking to overturn Plyler v. Doe, a 44-year-old landmark U.S. Supreme Court ruling that ensures all children have access to a public education regardless of their immigration status. The push to overturn the 1982 decision arose during a March 18, 2026 hearing by the…
As reported by The 74, on March 17, 2026 legislation passed unanimously by the U.S. House Education committee would require states that receive federal literacy grants to follow the science of reading. The unanimous bipartisan vote is a sign that improving reading outcomes is a goal shared by both Republicans…
Although the recently passed fiscal year 2026 (FY26) budget for the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) did not ban the outsourcing of certain education programs to other federal agencies, it strongly condemned and discouraged the transfer of key programs out of the USDE. The bicameral and bipartisan statement said that…
According to a February 18, 2026 update from minority members on the House Committee on Education and Workforce and other Democrats, the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) has yet to respond to House Democrats’ 2025 inquiry into how the agency is supporting states and school districts with students who have…
On February 2, 2026 the FY26 education funding bill was finally signed into law. As a result, the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) is now funded for fiscal year 2026. The compromise measure won final approval from the U.S. House by a 217-214 vote. The budget funds the USDE at…
Identical U.S. House and Senate legislation is drawing bipartisan support for attempts to modernize identifications for children with reading challenges, although some disability rights advocacy groups and education organizations caution the move could put struggling readers further behind. Specifically, the 21st Century Dyslexia Act proposes that IDEA definition of a…
On January 21, 2026, the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) signed a joint motion to dismiss an appeal in a lawsuit that sought to allow it to move ahead with its anti-DEI policy. In abandoning its appeal, the agency signaled that it’s effectively stepping back from trying to enforce the policy. In…
A bipartisan and bicameral proposed agreement released on January 19, 2026 would fund the U.S. Department of Education (USDE) at $79 billion for fiscal year 2026 (FY26), which is $217 million above FY 2025 levels. The agreement would derail the Trump administration’s efforts to downsize and eventually eliminate the USDE.…
