Federal Funding Progress Slows

Congress continued to work towards completion of fiscal year 2026 (FY26) appropriations this week, but leadership has most recently signaled that formal action is likely to wait until after the upcoming holiday recess period. As a reminder, three bills – Agriculture, Legislative Branch, and Military Construction–VA – were enacted through last month’s continuing resolution (CR), which funds the rest of the government, including education programs like the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act (Perkins V), on a temporary basis through January 30.

House and Senate Appropriations Chairs Tom Cole (R-OK) and Susan Collins (R-ME) have reportedly neared agreement on topline allocations for six of the remaining nine bills and are close to resolving the final three, including the largest measures which include Labor-HHS-Education bill, Defense, and Energy and Water. Agreement on these overall funding levels is a critical step in the wider appropriations process, as House and Senate versions – particularly for Labor-HHS-Education – are tens of billions of dollars apart, with the House proposing significantly deeper cuts to domestic programs than the Senate.

In the Senate, the Appropriations Committee has advanced bipartisan bills for five measures, including its Labor-HHS-Education bill, which would maintain level funding for Perkins V’s state grant program. In the House, all twelve appropriations bills have cleared committee on party-line votes, but only five have passed the floor, and no further House votes are expected this year. Chair Cole (R-OK) has indicated that the House will likely wait until January to consider final, negotiated packages and has left the possibility open for another short-term funding extension if talks are close to resolution by the January 30 deadline.

Advance CTE will continue to monitor the FY26 outlook and advocate for greater investments in Career Technical Education (CTE) and other federal education and workforce development efforts. View the current appropriations status table

ETA Assistant Secretary Confirmed

Late Thursday, the Senate approved along party lines a large package of Trump administration nominees. Included in this group was Henry Mack to serve as the next Assistant Secretary for the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Employment and Training Administration (ETA). Mack formerly served as the Florida State CTE Director and most recently has been serving as a Senior Advisor at DOL this year. ETA is the office responsible for overseeing the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) and apprenticeship programs among other initiatives. Notably, ETA is the primary entity where the administration has proposed to transfer day-to-day administrative responsibilities for K-12 education and CTE currently housed at the U.S. Department of Education (ED). Mack was nominated by President Trump earlier this year, as reported previously.

Workforce Pell Details Continue to Take Shape

Last week, the Accountability in Higher Education and Access through Demand-driven Workforce Pell (AHEAD) committee signed off on a proposed set of draft regulations to implement the newly enacted Workforce Pell grant program. The new effort expands federal Pell grant eligibility for certain shorter-term career preparation programs beginning on July 1, 2026. The draft rules are expected to be published for public comment early next year before moving toward finalization.

DOL Hosts Webinar on Workforce Report

Federal leaders from ED and DOL outlined a shared vision for closer alignment between education and workforce systems during a webinar this week, emphasizing collaboration, employer engagement, and clear pathways to family-sustaining careers. The speakers included Acting Assistant Secretary of the Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education (OCTAE) Nick Moore, who highlighted Career Technical Education (CTE) as serving both learners and employers, the importance of integrating Perkins V and WIOA planning through combined state plans, and the need to better define and prioritize credentials of value based on regional and state labor market demand. Learn more about the webinar

The conversation underscored strategies such as expanding work-based learning and apprenticeships, strengthening transitions between secondary and postsecondary education, using data to focus resources on what works, and leveraging tools like Workforce Pell to broaden access to high-quality career pathways. Many of the topics directly tie to the Trump administration’s workforce development priorities outlined in “America’s Talent Strategy: Building the Workforce for the Golden Age,” the report that came out earlier this year.

ED Announces New Talent Marketplace Grant Competition

ED recently launched a $15 million “Connecting Talent to Opportunity Challenge” to accelerate the creation and scaling of statewide Talent Marketplaces – digital systems that better connect learners, employers, and job opportunities through tools like credential registries and skills-based job matching. Beginning January 2026, states working with CTE, adult education, and workforce partners can apply for funding and technical support to build these systems, with the goal of expanding access to high-quality career pathways and boosting labor force participation. Read more about the competition

Odds & Ends

• Secretary of Education Linda McMahon visited South Carolina as part of the Returning Education to the States Tour. The visit highlighted civic education, support for learners with disabilities, and state-led education innovation. Read more about the visit