The Education Department will relocate from its Washington headquarters to a smaller office space in the capital as part of the Trump administration's ongoing efforts to dismantle the agency, officials confirmed Thursday. The move is scheduled for August.
The agency's headquarters building has been 70% vacant following mass layoffs since President Donald Trump took office, according to the Education Department. The Energy Department will assume the lease on the current headquarters building.
Education Secretary Linda McMahon called the relocation a milestone in the administration's efforts to shutter the agency, which Trump ordered to move toward closure nearly one year ago. "Thanks to the hard work of so many, we have made unprecedented progress in reducing the federal education footprint, and now we are pleased to give this building to an agency that will benefit far more from its space than the Department of Education," McMahon said in a written statement.
Administration officials said the move would save taxpayers money by eliminating wasted space and avoiding needed maintenance costs on the Energy Department's current headquarters building.
What the Right Is Saying
Trump administration officials frame the relocation as a common-sense measure to reduce government waste. The Education Department said eliminating the unused space and avoiding maintenance on another building would save taxpayer dollars.
The administration has pointed to the transfer of student loan management to the Treasury Department as evidence of progress in its restructuring efforts. The management of loans in default has already moved to Treasury, and responsibility for the remaining $1.7 trillion federal student loan portfolio is slated to transfer at an unspecified future date.
Supporters argue that moving education functions to other agencies with broader missions — rather than maintaining a standalone department — aligns with Trump's campaign promise to reduce the federal government's role in education. The administration has emphasized that it is consolidating programs where they fit more naturally with other departments' existing missions.
What the Left Is Saying
The union representing Education Department workers condemned the relocation as a signal that education remains under threat. "The message the Secretary's announcement sends to our staff and the American public is clear — education is next on the chopping block," said Rachel Gittleman, president of American Federation of Government Employees Local 252, in a statement.
While only Congress has the authority to formally close the department, the administration has transferred many of its programs and functions to other federal agencies through 10 so-called interagency agreements. Critics argue this approach effectively dismantles the agency piecemeal without congressional approval.
Progressive advocacy groups have warned that the ongoing reductions could undermine federal oversight of student loans, K-12 funding for low-income schools, and teacher training programs — functions that have been distributed to agencies including Health and Human Services and the Labor Department.
What the Numbers Show
The Education Department's headquarters building is currently 70% vacant, reflecting the significant reduction in staff since Trump took office. The department has not disclosed the exact number of employees who have been laid off.
The federal student loan portfolio totals approximately $1.7 trillion. Management of loans in default has already transferred to the Treasury Department, with the remainder of the portfolio scheduled to follow.
The administration has executed 10 interagency agreements to transfer Education Department programs to other federal agencies. These transfers include family engagement initiatives, funding for low-income schools, and teacher training programs.
The Bottom Line
The Education Department's relocation marks another concrete step in the administration's effort to reduce the agency's footprint, even without formal congressional action to close the department. The move will consolidate the remaining staff in smaller quarters while handing the current building's lease to Energy Department.
The administration has now transferred most major Education Department functions — including the massive student loan portfolio — to other agencies through executive actions. What remains to be seen is whether Congress will take up legislation to formally dissolve the department, or whether the current restructuring represents the administration's endpoint for the agency.
The union and worker advocates have signaled they will continue to oppose the administration\u2019s actions, framing the relocation as part of a broader effort to diminish federal commitment to education. Watch for congressional oversight hearings on the department's remaining functions and any legal challenges to the interagency transfers.