Thank You to the 110 House Members Who Signed the FY 2027 Basic Education Funding Letter

The Basic Education Coalition thanks the 110 members of the House of Representatives who signed a bipartisan letter urging the Appropriations Committee to support strong funding for international basic education in Fiscal Year 2027. Led by Representatives Mike Quigley and Brian Fitzpatrick, the letter was sent on March 13, 2026, to Chairman Mario Diaz-Balart and Ranking Member Lois Frankel of the Subcommittee on National Security, Department of State, and Related Programs. The letter asks for $970 million for the Nita M. Lowey Basic Education Fund, including $121.6 million for the Global Partnership for Education and $30.4 million for Education Cannot Wait.

This funding would build on the bipartisan support that basic education programs have received for years under the READ Act. As the letter notes, an estimated 278 million children could be out of school globally by the end of 2026, and this funding helps give them a path toward learning, stability, and opportunity.

We are grateful to every member who signed on, and we will continue working with Congress to make sure this funding moves forward in the FY 2027 bill.

Devex: Will the US start funding global education again in 2026?

Devex article by Gabriella Jóźwiak on January 6

A new Devex article looks at whether the U.S. government will begin funding global education programs again in 2026, after last year's closure of USAID and the transfer of remaining foreign aid programs to the State Department. Reporter Gabriella Jóźwiak notes that under the Trump administration, barely any of the nearly $1 billion allocated to global education for fiscal 2025 was actually spent, leaving advocates hopeful but cautious about what this year will bring.

Anna Roberts, the Basic Education Coalition's Director of Government Relations, is featured in the piece sharing reasons for cautious optimism, including new State Department job postings for foreign aid staff, a better-than-expected FY2026 appropriations bill from the House, and the appointment of a special envoy for Best Future Generations. As Roberts told Devex, "We'll rebuild. It's going to be slow, and it's going to look different. But we will." You can read the full article on Devex.