Report: Education Department’s “Efficiency” Layoffs Cost At Least $28 Million
Monday, February 2, 2026
AI Disclaimer: This platform utilizes AI to summarize breaking news and may contain inaccuracies or errors. As the platform grows, we intend to add more human oversight and pursue justice while minimizing AI involvement.
The Education Department spent an estimated $28-38 million on attempted staff cuts at its Office of Civil Rights, with nearly 50% of its 4,000-strong workforce pushed onto administrative leave, according to a US Government Accountability Office report.
Secretary of Education Linda McMahon's "commitment to efficiency" led to the layoff of close to half of the OCR's 575 employees, resulting in over 9,000 federal complaints about discrimination in education being filed, with 90% of the 7,000 resolved cases being thrown out.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, who commissioned the GAO report, slammed the Trump administration's actions, stating that "every child in America should be able to get a good education" and that the firing of half of the Education Department employees working to protect civil rights was "unacceptable" and wasted taxpayer dollars.
