Congress dealt a blow to Education Secretary Betsy DeVos's school choice agenda in a tentative spending bill released late Wednesday, rejecting her attempt to spend more than $1 billion promoting choice-friendly policies and private school vouchers.
The House on Thursday approved the $1.3 trillion federal spending package, which includes a $3.9 billion boost for the Education Department. It heads to the Senate for a vote.
DeVos had sought to cut Education Department funding by $9 billion — about 13 percent. She wanted to eliminate money for after-school programs for needy youth and ax a grant program that helps low-income students go to college in favor of spending more than $1 billion to promote charter schools, magnet schools and private school vouchers. Her proposal also outlined cuts to the Office for Civil Rights.
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