Trump Administration Proposes Elimination of Homeless Education Funding for Second Consecutive Year
The Trump Administration’s FY2027 budget again proposes eliminating McKinney-Vento homeless education funding. Learn what’s at stake and how to take action.
The Trump Administration’s FY2027 budget proposal once again seeks to eliminate all dedicated funding for the McKinney-Vento Act’s Education for Homeless Children and Youth (EHCY) program. Despite Congress flatly rejecting this same proposal just two months ago in the final enacted FY2026 budget, the Administration is doubling down on a plan that threatens the stability of over 1.5 million students experiencing homelessness.
The Trump Administration once again calls for eliminating the EHCY program by consolidating it into a massive block grant, alongside 17 other education programs. Without dedicated EHCY funding, the protections that McKinney-Vento provides students experiencing homelessness are essentially also eliminated.
In total, the budget request would cut $8 billion from the U.S. Department of Education, eliminating funding for before and after school programs, rural education programs, and many other programs that support vulnerable students (a complete summary of the K-12 proposal is here).
The proposal also would cut or eliminate several higher education programs, including TRIO, GEAR UP, Child Care Access Means Parents in School (CCAMPIS), and Federal Work Study. For early childhood programs, the budget calls for level funding for Head Start and the Child Care and Development Block Grant, while eliminating the Preschool Development Block Grant Birth Through Five. The proposal also would cut housing programs.
As a reminder, the Administration’s FY2027 budget proposal is only a wish list, not law.
Congress ultimately will decide the fate of EHCY and other essential programs that support children, youth, and families experiencing homelessness.
This means that direct communication with Congressional offices is the only way to ensure that homeless children and youth have access to the education and support that is their best path to stability and a future free from homelessness.
Critical Protections For Students Experiencing Homelessness At-Risk By This Proposal
- Accessing help from school district homeless liaisons, who are responsible for identifying homeless students, enrolling them, and connecting them with community resources.
- Remaining in their original school, even after moving outside its attendance boundaries;
- Receiving transportation assistance to ensure consistent school attendance;
- Enrolling in school without typically required documentation, which is often lost or unavailable due to frequent moves; and
- Other critical protections outlined in the McKinney-Vento Act
Take Action: Tell Congress to Preserve Dedicated Funding for EHCY
Earlier this year, Congress listened to you and maintained dedicated federal homeless education funding – rejecting nearly all of the President’s previous budget requests by a large bipartisan majority. We must do it again. Please take two simple actions right now.
- Ask your Members of Congress to support dedicated funding for the Education for the Homeless Children and Youth program.
- Complete this form if you would like to meet with your Congressional members. By completing this form you are simply indicating interest – not signing up or committing to attending meetings. Someone from SHC will reach out to you directly to share more information.
EHCY & RHYA Talking Points
- The McKinney-Vento Act’s EHCY program is the only federal education program that removes barriers to school identification, enrollment, attendance, and success caused by homelessness. No other federal program has the responsibility for and expertise in finding, engaging, and serving these students. Local liaisons help identify homeless children and youth, ensure school access and stability, provide direct services, and coordinate with community agencies to meet basic needs.
- At the current funding level, only one in five school districts receives direct support through EHCY. Without EHCY support, students experiencing homelessness struggle to enroll in and attend school and face barriers to accessing other local, state, and federal educational programs.
- A study of school districts that received targeted funding for homeless students in pandemic recovery showed measurable improvements in student attendance and academic performance.
- Lack of a high school degree is the single greatest risk factor for homelessness as a young adult, so an investment in EHCY is also homelessness prevention.
- The Runaway and Homeless Youth Act (RHYA) funds community-based organizations to provide housing and services to youth and young adults. RHYA grants support short-term crisis housing for minors with a focus on family reunification, longer-term transitional living programs that help young people attain stability and self-sufficiency–including maternity group homes for pregnant and parenting youth–and street outreach programs connecting youth to services.
- RHYA programs help prevent and end the trafficking of youth. One in five young people experiencing homelessness have also been trafficked for sex, labor, or both. RHYA prevents trafficking by providing housing and support to youth and identifying survivors, ensuring their safety and support.
- RHYA programs are highly effective—over 90 percent of youth exit to a safe, stable living situation, 70 percent graduate or earn a GED, and 82 percent are employed or job-seeking at exit. Yet, due to underfunding, RHYA programs reach only a sliver of the youth in need. Only 25 percent of grant applicants receive funding, even with scores of 98/100 or higher, highlighting the urgent need for greater investment.
- The experience of homelessness as a young person is traumatic and significantly increases the risk of chronic homelessness in adulthood. Up to 25 percent of chronically homeless adults first experienced homelessness as minors, with another 25 percent first experiencing it between ages 18-25. Preventing chronic homelessness among adults requires addressing youth homelessness.
- RHYA programs offer more than housing. They connect youth to education and employment while building life skills and reconnecting families when safe. RHYA helps young people in crisis survive and transition to thriving adulthood.