Iowa first state granted Education Department waiver for use of federal funds
In another cut to the federal bureaucracy, the U.S. Department of Education has granted Iowa the first Returning Education to the States waiver, allowing the state to use certain federal funds…
In another cut to the federal bureaucracy, the U.S. Department of Education has granted Iowa the first Returning Education to the States waiver, allowing the state to use certain federal funds with greater flexibility.
Under the waiver, Iowa will combine four federal funding streams into one and direct the money toward state and local priorities rather than federal mandates.
The change is expected to save the state nearly $8 million over four years in compliance costs, according to a department release Wednesday.
“Iowa leaders seek to focus more federal resources on improving student achievement rather than federal compliance,” the release said. “State education leaders will use the redirected funds and the greater flexibility they afford to expand support for evidence-based literacy training, strengthening their teacher pipeline, and narrowing achievement gaps.”
Education Secretary Linda McMahon posted she was “thrilled” to announce the waiver and said in the release that it “illustrates the Trump Administration’s commitment to returning education to the states by empowering state leaders, who know their students far better than bureaucrats in Washington, D.C.”
McMahon and President Donald Trump have said they intend to dissolve the department. The administration has already cut staff and begun transferring many of its functions to other federal agencies, a process it has described as the department’s “final mission.”
Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds, a Republican, called the waiver “an important step toward returning education to the states and putting students first.”
“Iowa now has greater flexibility to focus federal resources on what drives student success, and we’re well positioned to do so,” Reynolds said. “I look forward to continuing to improve student outcomes, reduce red tape for schools, support teachers, and ensure federal education dollars are focused toward state and local priorities where they make the greatest difference.”
Reynolds signed Iowa’s school choice program into law three years ago.
Indiana and Oklahoma, which have strong school choice programs, also have applied for the waiver, which is granted to states that demonstrate how the flexibility will help improve student outcomes.
