Click here or on the image above to watch Chairman Capito’s opening remarks from the hearing. 

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies (Labor-HHS), chaired a hearing with U.S. Department of Education Secretary Linda McMahon to review sthe President’s Fiscal Year 2026 budget request.  

Below is the opening statement of Chairman Capito as prepared for delivery: 

“Good morning. Secretary McMahon, thank you for being here today to discuss the president’s Fiscal Year 2026 budget request and your priorities for the Department of Education. 

“I am pleased to be joined this morning by my friend and ranking member Senator Baldwin, as well as our full committee chair, Senator Collins, and vice chair, Senator Murray. 

“We are all committed to return the Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations process to regular order and these hearings are the first step in that process. 

“All Americans should have the opportunity to receive a high-quality education from pre-school through postsecondary education. I know that education is a key to success and a vital part of maintaining strong communities across our nation. 

“I’ve seen it firsthand in my home state of West Virginia, where I began my professional career as a college counselor and advisor working closely with many first-generation college students. Through this role, I was able to personally see how education provides students with life-changing opportunities.

“Secretary McMahon, you have taken charge of the Department of Education at a critical time for our nation’s students. According to the latest National Assessment of Educational Progress scores, students have still not recovered from pandemic-related school closures—national scores on math and reading are worse than pre-pandemic levels in all tested grades. And in reading, students’ scores continue to decline. A third of 8th graders are not even reading at a basic level. This is unacceptable.  

“We know that throwing more money at the problem will not lead to a solution. These devastating declines in achievement are in spite of the almost $190 billion in COVID relief funding provided for elementary and secondary education during the pandemic. 

“Federal education spending should, at a minimum, be focused on ensuring that America’s children can read and write at a basic level. This is critical not only for children to flourish, but also for America remain a competitive nation. 

“That is why I strongly believe that federal education spending should support states and policies that afford kids the greatest opportunity to learn and achieve academically. Education decisions should be made by those closest to our students, those who know what they need to succeed— local schools, teachers, and, most importantly, parents.

“Formula grant programs like Title I, IDEA, and Career and Technical Education provide the crucial flexibility that states and local communities need to best meet the needs of their students, and I look forward to continuing to support these key programs in fiscal year 2026.

“Madam Secretary, I am pleased that your budget proposes to increase another important program, the Charter School Program. While West Virginia is fairly new to offering charter school education, we are already seeing promising results in expanded opportunities for public school students.

“For example, the WIN Academy?at?BridgeValley Community and Technical College?is an?early college charter high school?designed to provide a free accelerated, dynamic degree program?for juniors and seniors in the?Kanawha Valley. The school was started to help local hospitals address the severe shortage in nurses and has been so successful that it has already expanded to include an advanced manufacturing track in partnership with Toyota. Students are enrolled in the college and graduate from high school ready to start their careers in high need, well-paying fields.

“This school is meeting the intent of charter schools—using the flexibility they are granted to offer innovative learning opportunities to benefit students. With the additional funding for charter schools proposed in your budget, I know that many more students across the country would benefit from opportunities like the WIN Academy.

“Secretary McMahon, this is also a pivotal time for our nation’s student loan borrowers. Borrowers have been forced to navigate an exceptionally confusing four years full of bad advice and unfair promises of illegal loan forgiveness from the prior administration. And as a result, one in four federal student loan borrowers are either in default or a late stage of delinquency on their loans, as of the beginning of May. And only 38% of borrowers are actually in repayment and current on their student loans. 

“After years of confusion, the department must work to restore trust with borrowers by providing clear and consistent information about repayment. Student loan borrowers deserve that clarity in order to fulfil their obligations to repay their loans. I am grateful that under your leadership the department has begun the difficult task of getting borrowers back on the path to repayment and I look forward to continued updates on your progress. 

“Secretary McMahon, the Fiscal Year 2026 appropriations process will be challenging, but I look forward to working with you to responsibly allocate our limited taxpayers’ resources to programs that help provide the best opportunity for a high-quality education for all students. 

“Thank you again for being here today and I look forward to your testimony.

“Now I will turn to Senator Baldwin for her opening statement.”

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