Lawmakers in Utah signed a joint resolution seeking to abolish the Department of Education. The state's congressmen and senators urged President Donald Trump to stop federal funding for education and instead bring the decision-making and delegation on education issues back to the state level.
Lawmakers passed the joint resolution HJR 017 on March 17. Lawmakers underscored that the Constitution provides for the states to handle matters concerning education and not the federal government.
House representatives voted on HJR 017 60 to 14. Senate representatives voted on HJR 017 20 to 1, as per Breitbart.
In signing HJR 017, Utah lawmakers also urged Congress to pass and uphold the Enumerated Powers Act Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act, Financial Obligations Reform Act, Intergenerational Financial Obligations Reform Act and Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act. Utah lawmakers also called on other states to do the same and document "federal overreach."
This was not the first move seeking to disband the Department of Education following Trump's ascension as president. In February, the president's GOP party members in the Kentucky House proposed a similar measure, as Parent Herald reported.
Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie sponsored the bill (HR 899) on abolishing the Department of Education. He cited he wants the agency gone on Dec. 31, 2018. He said he worked on his proposal as far as December 2016.
Rep. David Rouzer of North Carolina also passed a bill (HR 1510) last March seeking to abolish the Department of Education given the lack of progress and improvement in the current system. "We can get far more out of the tax dollars currently being spent on education by dismantling this billion dollar federal agency and returning those resources back to the states," the congressman said in his press release.
Do you think these measures will succeed? Are you in favor of giving the states back the function and responsibilities when it comes to education matters? Sound off in the comments below.
