Closing of Dallas DOE regional office halts all services to Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi, union says

Yahoo

29-03-2025

The Brief
Eleven Democratic senators are demanding an investigation into the Trump administration's efforts to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education, warning the cuts could have "disastrous consequences on the education system."
Part of the cuts included closing the regional office in Dallas, which serves all public school students in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi.
The union representing local federal workers says all work done out of the North Texas DOE district has stopped.
President Donald Trump says student loan services will move to the Small Business Administration, and other services — like the special education administration — will be absorbed by other federal agencies.
DALLAS - Eleven Democratic senators have sent a letter to the U.S. acting inspector general, demanding an investigation into the Trump administration's efforts to dismantle the U.S. Department of Education.
The lawmakers warn the cuts could have "disastrous consequences on the education system."
The recent cuts are already impacting services in North Texas.
What we know
The future of the DOE remains in legal limbo.
The Texas NAACP is the latest organization to file a lawsuit challenging President Donald Trump's executive order to dismantle the DOE.
In a statement, Texas NAACP President Gary Bledsoe said, "We will vigorously oppose this unconstitutional overreach and defend every student's right to equal educational opportunity."
By the numbers
When President Trump took office, there were 4,100 DOE workers. As of Friday, the department has shrunk to about half.
Local perspective
Part of the cuts included closing the regional office in Dallas, which serves all public school students in Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi.
On Tuesday, the union representing federal workers rallied outside the now-closed Downtown Dallas office, along with Environmental Protection Agency employees who are also worried about losing their jobs.
Seria Smith is the president of the American Federation of Government Employees, Local 252 Union. She says all work done out of the North Texas DOE district has stopped.
"What happens to the college students in the state of Texas that are applying for student loans? What happens to the college and universities filing for eligibility for Title IV funds to make sure their students can qualify for federal student aid? All of that work has stopped," she said.
What they're saying
Constitutional law attorney David Coale is not involved in this case.
"At some point, they're going to have to do something to kind of coordinate all these separate lawsuits filed by all these organizations, like the NAACP," he said.
Coale says it's a very delicate situation.
"The administration is correct that as the CEO, as the chief executive, Mr. Trump can appoint who he wants to lead the agency and can set priorities for the agency. He can't undo acts of Congress," he said. "He can't get rid of the department entirely or repeal all laws. So somewhere in the middle is where those two principles come together."
What's next
President Trump says student loan services will move to the Small Business Administration, and other services — like the special education administration — will be absorbed by other federal agencies.
The Source
Information from this article comes from national news coverage, the Texas NAACP, Constitutional law attorney David Coale and previous FOX 4 coverage.