The FY 2025 budget request President Biden submitted to Congress this week included important funding for key higher education programs and $82.4 billion in discretionary funding proposed for the Department of Education, a $3.1 billion increase over FY 2023. 

While Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona touted the proposed education budget as “investments proposed on top of investments delivered,” it is unlikely that the president’s budget will get much traction in Congress as the FY 2024 funding process has been contentious and has yet to be finalized. But the budget serves as a marker for the administration’s values at the onset of an election year with the political parties at odds over spending limits and policy priorities.

For student aid programs, the highlight of the budget includes a $750 increase in the Pell Grant maximum award. This increase would raise the maximum award to $8,145, continuing on the path to double the maximum to $13,000 by 2029. The Pell increase is proposed as a combination of a $100 increase in discretionary funding (the funding provided in annual appropriations) and a $650 increase from mandatory funding (which is part of the existing Pell Grant funding structure but is more difficult to secure on the entitlement side of the budget). In an unusual move, the budget also proposes to limit the Pell Grant increase to $100, or $7,495, for students at proprietary institutions.

The budget also includes level funding for the Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant and Federal Work-Study programs, which is in stark contrast to the deep cuts proposed by the House, and smaller cuts in funding proposed by the Senate. Funding for TRIO and GEAR UP is proposed for increases, with level funding for Graduate Assistance in Areas of National Need.

For higher education programs, the Strengthening Institutions programs in Titles III and V of the Higher Education Act include proposed increases, as do Teacher Quality Partnership Grants, and Child Care Means Parents in School. However, Title VI International Education is slated for a $4 million reduction.

For Department of Education staff and support, the budget includes a 31% increase in funding for Student Aid Administration to help with FAFSA implementation and regular operations of the student aid programs, and a 16% increase for the Office of Civil Rights, to address the increase in complaints from students. Similar proposed increases have been rejected by Congress recently in response to the administration’s efforts to forgive student loan debt.

In addition to the regular appropriated student aid programs, the administration uses mandatory funding proposals, which are unlikely to be enacted by Congress, to highlight two additional higher education policy goals – free community college and reducing the cost of college.

As in previous budgets, this year’s proposal includes $120 billion for a Free Community College program, which would create federal-state partnerships for first-time students to receive the first two years of community college free so that Pell Grants and other financial aid can be used for cost of attendance. The program would also subsidize up to $4,500 per year at eligible minority-serving institutions, including private, nonprofit institutions, for students from families earning less than $125,000 per year.

A new mandatory program the budget proposes is $12 billion for Reducing the Cost of College, to provide matching grants to states and state systems of higher education to cover three grant programs: 1) Classroom to Career, for free career-connected dual-enrollment programs for high school students; 2) Incentivizing Excellence, to provide grants to institutions that “deliver an excellent education at an affordable price;” and 3) Scaling Evidence-Based Strategies, to expand proven institutional interventions that result in increased completion rates, and reduce costs for students.