Education Secretary Betsy DeVos defended the education budget proposed by the Trump administration, particularly its move to slash federal dollars for the Special Olympics.
In what DeVos called one of the many “difficult decisions” needed for fiscal reform, the Trump administration included in its annual budget proposal a provision that would entirely eliminate the $17.6 million for the Special Olympics. The Education Secretary said that it is an attempt to reduce her agency’s federal footprint and that the Special Olympics is a private organization that raises $100 million each year.
“There are dozens of worthy nonprofits that support students and adults with disabilities that don’t get a dime of federal grant money,” she said on Capitol Hill Wednesday. “Given our current budget realities, the federal government cannot fund every worthy program, particularly ones that enjoy robust support from private donations.”
Every year, the White House puts forward a proposal for the federal budget that customarily includes bold spending reforms but has a virtually negligible impact on the budget crafted by the Congress.
Typically, the budget is constructed piecemeal, as Congress authorizes certain federal programs for a determined amount of time, reauthorizing and funding those programs when they are set to expire. Congress will also pass spending measures called “continuing resolutions,” which preserves the current funding levels previously authorized codified into law.
Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., who leads the education subcommittee of the Senate Appropriations Committee, said in a statement Wednesday that a federal cut to the Special Olympics programs would not clear his congressional jurisdiction.
“I’m a longtime supporter of Special Olympics,” Blunt said in the statement.
