What budget bills or appropriations cuts affected higher education funding since 2020?
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Executive summary
State and federal appropriations and budget proposals since 2020 produced widespread cuts and targeted reductions affecting higher education: 27 states cut higher-education funding in FY2020 or FY2021 (CBPP) and state funding declined in 37 states between 2020–21 by an average of about 6% with California cutting $1.7 billion (CBPP; NEA) [1] [2]. At the federal level, presidential budget proposals and congressional reconciliation efforts since 2020 have proposed or advanced major reductions in student-aid and grant programs, including administration proposals that sought large Education Department cuts (FY2020 request cut $7.1B; FY2025 proposals sought a 15% ED cut) and 2025 reconciliation language aimed at hundreds of billions in savings from higher education programs [3] [4] [5].
1. Pandemic-era state cuts that forced campuses to tighten belts
When COVID-19 crashed state revenues, many legislatures trimmed higher-education appropriations: 27 states enacted cuts in fiscal 2020–2021 per the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, and NEA’s analysis found state funding fell in 37 states between 2020 and 2021 by an average of 6%, with California lawmakers cutting roughly $1.7 billion and shrinking the budget about 10% from 2020 levels [1] [2]. Those cuts translated to program eliminations, hiring freezes and tuition pressure—CBPP and state reporting document colleges facing both reduced state support and new pandemic-related expenses [1].
2. Federal rescue dollars masked but didn’t erase damage
Federal relief (CARES and later packages) temporarily backstopped some campuses, but states still reallocated or allowed pandemic-era one-offs to lapse. Multiple state reports show temporary surges of pandemic or surplus funds that later dwindled—Connecticut used roughly $250 million in emergency help that fell to about $76 million in a later preliminary budget, leaving institutions again exposed [6]. National groups warned that federal relief was insufficient to replace recurring state funding declines [7].
3. Presidential budgets and proposed federal cuts: repeated threats, some enacted, some resisted
Presidential budget requests since 2020 repeatedly proposed reductions to Education Department programs: the FY2020 administration requested $64B for ED—a $7.1B (10%) reduction versus FY2019 [3]. In 2025, the administration’s budget proposed a 15% cut to the Department of Education, eliminating or consolidating dozens of grant programs and rescinding pandemic-era relief funds [4]. Congress and higher-ed advocates pushed back; nevertheless, reconciliation and appropriations processes in 2024–25 included proposals and committee actions to squeeze higher-education spending and student-aid programs [8] [5].
4. Congress’ appropriations and reconciliation maneuvers created new risks
Beyond presidents’ proposals, congressional maneuvers raised the stakes. Education-focused reconciliation drafts and committee bills in 2025 aimed at major “savings” in higher education—EducationCounsel summarized a Senate education reconciliation text that would produce an estimated $300 billion in savings over 2025–2034 focused on higher ed—measures that would alter Pell eligibility, loan limits and grant programs if enacted [5]. Advocacy groups warned that House and Senate budget packages contained proposals to cut student aid, flat‑fund or eliminate campus grant lines, and postpone discretionary support [8] [9].
5. Where cuts hit hardest: community colleges, non-elite public campuses, support services
Analysts and state case studies show cuts disproportionately affected institutions that rely on state appropriations and local enrollments: community colleges and regional public campuses faced program cuts, course reductions, and staffing losses because they could not offset revenue loss with out‑of‑state tuition the way flagship universities sometimes can [10] [11]. NEA documented faculty pay and services declines tied directly to diminished state appropriations [2] [11].
6. Competing narratives and political drivers
Sources paint two competing frames: budget officials emphasize fiscal constraints and deficit management driving reductions, while higher‑education advocates see a political choice to prioritize tax cuts or defense over public colleges and student aid [9] [8]. Education associations tracked appropriations closely and lobbied to preserve Pell and grant programs, noting that presidential requests are not law and Congress often restores funding—yet reconciliation packages and appropriations subcommittee bills have made deeper cuts a live possibility [12] [8].
7. Limitations and what reporting does not say
Available sources do not provide a single comprehensive list of every specific appropriations line cut at the program level nationwide since 2020; reporters and analysts must stitch together state budget reports, federal budget requests, appropriations subcommittee bills and advocacy tracking to gauge impacts (not found in current reporting). Also, exact dollar totals of cuts differ across analyses because some counts measure proposed cuts, some measure enacted appropriations and others measure targeted terminations of awards [13] [5].
8. Bottom line for readers and policy watchers
Since 2020 the combination of state pandemic-era budget choices, shifting federal proposals, and 2024–25 reconciliation/appropriations fights produced both enacted and proposed reductions that squeezed public higher education—27 states cut in 2020–21, 37 states saw funding declines in 2020–21 averaging ~6%, and federal budgets and reconciliation texts in 2024–25 floated substantial cuts or program eliminations [1] [2] [5] [4]. Watch the appropriations process and state budget cycles closely: presidential proposals matter for rhetoric and agendas, but the concrete impacts turn on enacted appropriations and the expiration of temporary pandemic support [3] [14].
Sources cited above include analyses and reporting from CBPP, NEA, state press outlets, federal budget documents and education-policy organizations referenced in the reporting [1] [2] [6] [7] [3] [4] [5] [8] [12] [14].