This week, the Trump administration released a widely anticipated “skinny” budget request, which provides some initial insight into the President’s vision for the upcoming fiscal year. Elsewhere, House Republicans continued to make progress on a budget reconciliation package as the wider appropriations process continues to take shape. In addition, President Trump signed several executive orders with implications for CTE, workforce development, and education.
‘Skinny’ Budget Released As FY26 Comes Into Focus
Today, President Trump published an initial ‘skinny’ budget request for the upcoming 2026 federal fiscal year (FY26). The request provides high-level information regarding the administration’s vision for FY26, which calls for a 22.6% cut to domestic discretionary investments while proposing to increase funding for defense spending by roughly 13%. The request does not include significant details regarding program-level funding, including for the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act (Perkins V). Nonetheless, the request proposes a $12 billion funding cut for the U.S. Department of Education (ED) and a $4.6 billion cut for the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) – a 15.3% and 35% reduction in current levels of investment, respectively.
Throughout the budget request, the administration proposes a significant amount of program elimination and consolidation. As part of these aspects of the proposal, the President is requesting the consolidation of 18 competitive and formula programs under ED while also proposing to create a new consolidated workforce grant program dubbed “Make America Skilled Again” (MASA), which would combine a number of existing workforce development programs into a single programmatic grant. Both of these consolidation efforts would significantly decrease existing levels of federal funding in these areas.
The request also proposes to eliminate Adult Education state grants authorized under Title II of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) along with several other programs overseen and administered by ED and DOL, in addition to significant funding reductions for several other existing federal investments in education and workforce development.
A high-level overview of this initial skinny budget request can be found here. A slightly more detailed version of this request can be accessed here. The publication of this budget request is the first step in the wider FY26 budget and appropriations process and represents the Trump administration’s initial proposal for the coming fiscal year. In the coming months, Congress will need to work to craft legislation that can garner the support of a majority of lawmakers in each chamber. As these efforts and more move forward, Advance CTE will continue to advocate for robust funding for Career Technical Education (CTE) and other critical programs that ensure learner and worker success.
House Ed Committee Advances Budget Reconciliation Effort
Earlier this week, the House Education & the Workforce Committee marked up and passed its portion of a forthcoming budget reconciliation bill. As a reminder, Congressional Republicans are currently working to advance the bulk of President Trump’s legislative agenda, which includes changes to tax policy, energy, immigration, border security, defense, and more, using the Congressional budget reconciliation process.
The legislation was passed by the committee along party lines and is intended to align with earlier instructions to identify a reduction of $330 billion in federal spending for programs falling under the committee’s jurisdiction. The legislation makes significant changes to postsecondary student aid and assistance programs and includes significant funding reductions aligned with this goal. Notably, the legislation includes a proposal to expand Pell grant program eligibility to shorter-term, high-quality CTE and job training programs. Advance CTE is continuing to analyze this aspect of the proposal closely as the process continues to move forward.
Executive Order Concerning Workforce Development
Last week, the Trump Administration issued an executive order (EO) titled “Preparing Americans for High-paying Skilled Trade Jobs of the Future,” aimed at the federal workforce development system. The EO tasks the Secretaries of Labor, Commerce, and Education to review all federal workforce programs under their purview in the next 90 days. The cabinet leaders are then tasked with delivering a “Comprehensive Workforce Strategy” report that provides recommendations to restructure or eliminate “ineffective” programs and determines whether resources could be further realigned to address critical workforce needs.
The EO also aims to increase the number of active apprentices in America to one million each year and directs these agencies to provide future recommendations on how existing federal investments in programs related to postsecondary student aid and the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act (Perkins V) could be leveraged to meet this goal. Read the Department of Education’s press release here.
Executive Order on Advancing Artificial Intelligence in Schools
Another executive order (EO) issued by the Trump administration last week looks to make artificial intelligence (AI) education a national priority. The EO, “Advancing Artificial Intelligence Education for American Youth,” focuses on integrating AI literacy, skills training, and educator development into the K-12 education system to maintain U.S. leadership in AI innovation. This order creates a new White House task force, led by the Director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy, that will coordinate federal agency efforts and identify opportunities to embed AI learning in the education system. It also launches a new “Presidential AI Challenge” that will spotlight innovative programs, as federal agencies are directed to prioritize AI education in existing grant programs and increase research and development opportunities.
Advance CTE continues to analyze these and other EOs for potential impacts on the CTE community and will continue to share updates as they are available.
