Where Title I Money Stands This Fall: What's Set for 2026-27 and What's Still Open
If someone at your school has heard that Title I is being cut this year, here's the actual picture. This school year's Title I funding is already law. The debate in Washington is about next year.
Title I money for the 2026-27 school year is already law: $18.43 billion, approved Feb. 3 and scheduled for payment to states in July and October installments. The uncertainty is FY2027, which funds 2027-28. The White House would keep Title I flat, the House committee would cut it 10 percent, and the current stopgap expires Dec. 11.
Last updated November 2026. We'll update this page after the Dec. 11 deadline.
Key takeaways
Congress set Title I, Part A at $18.43 billion for fiscal 2026 in the spending law signed Feb. 3, 2026, and that money pays for the 2026-27 school year.
The White House's FY2027 budget request keeps Title I at $18.43 billion but would fold Title IV-A and 21st Century Community Learning Centers into a new $2 billion block grant.
The House Appropriations Committee's FY2027 bill, approved June 9, 2026, would cut Title I to $16.5 billion, a $1.9 billion or 10 percent reduction, while keeping Title IV-A and 21st CCLC funded.
The continuing resolution keeping the federal government open expires Dec. 11, 2026.
Starting Nov. 1, 2026, the U.S. Department of Education requires a written justification of up to 255 characters with each grant drawdown.
Is Title I funding being cut?
No, not for the 2026-27 school year. Title I funding for this school year was set in the fiscal 2026 spending law at $18.43 billion, the same level the Department of Education reports for the program. The cuts in the news are proposals for fiscal 2027, which would pay for the 2027-28 school year. None of them is law yet.
Forward funding means Congress appropriates education money in one fiscal year to pay for the school year that starts the following summer.
That's why fiscal year labels confuse people. Fiscal 2026 money pays for 2026-27 classrooms. Fiscal 2027 money, the one Congress is still arguing about, pays for 2027-28.
The scary numbers that still rank in search results are mostly from 2025. In September 2025, a House committee approved a 26 percent Title I cut for fiscal 2026. That proposal didn't become law. The final fiscal 2026 bill, H.R. 7148, was signed Feb. 3, 2026, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget's appropriations tracker, and Title I came out at $18.43 billion.
How this year's Title I money is reaching states
Title I money reaches states in two installments, July 1 and Oct. 1. For 2026-27, the July installment went through the Education Department's own G5 grants system, and Education Week reported in August that the October installment would too, rather than the Department of Labor's portal. States then pass the money to districts, and districts draw it down as they spend.
The routing matters because the Education Department is handing day-to-day management of most K-12 programs to other agencies. Under an agreement announced Nov. 18, 2025, management of Title I, Part A is moving to the Department of Labor, according to AASA, the School Superintendents Association.
For now, the payment system hasn't moved. Education Week reported on Aug. 17 that the Oct. 1 formula funds would go out through G5, reversing earlier uncertainty about a switch to the Labor system.
New paperwork starting Nov. 1: "Defend the Spend"
The Education Department now asks every grant recipient to justify each drawdown in writing. A Sept. 28, 2026 memo set the rule, which took effect Nov. 1, 2026. Each payment request needs the program name, expense categories and amounts, and the dates of the expenses, in 255 characters or less, Higher Ed Dive reported.
The practical risk is slower reimbursement. AESA, the association of educational service agencies, warned in October that districts may have to cover some costs with state or local money while a flagged request waits for review. Ask your district finance office how MSDE is handling these justifications before you assume a reimbursement date.
The three FY2027 positions, side by side
For fiscal 2027, the White House proposes keeping Title I level, and the House Appropriations Committee proposes cutting it 10 percent. The Senate hasn't released its own fiscal 2027 education bill as of early November. The bigger split is over two smaller programs that many schools use for enrichment and after-school work.
Program (in billions) | FY2026 enacted | White House FY27 request | House committee FY27 bill |
|---|---|---|---|
Title I-A grants to districts | $18.43 | $18.43 | $16.5 |
Title IV-A (Student Support and Academic Enrichment) | about $1.38 | $0, moved into a $2B block grant | $1.385 |
21st Century Community Learning Centers | $1.3 | $0, moved into the same block grant | $1.3 |
Sources: the Department of Education's FY2027 budget summary for the enacted levels and the request, and the House Appropriations Committee Democrats' summary of the FY27 bill for the House figures. SchoolHouse Connection reports the same House numbers.
The White House block grant is called Make Education Great Again, or MEGA. The request describes it as a single $2 billion state formula grant for reading and math. It would replace 17 existing programs, which K-12 Dive put at $6.5 billion combined.
Why this matters for financial literacy programs
Title IV-A and 21st CCLC are two of the main federal streams that can pay for school financial literacy. Title IV-A names financial literacy in its statute, and 21st CCLC lists it as an allowable after-school activity. We walked through both in our guide to which funding streams can pay for financial literacy.
The two FY2027 positions pull in opposite directions. The White House plan protects Title I and ends dedicated funding for those two programs. The House bill trims Title I and keeps both programs at roughly this year's level. A program that depends on any one of the three streams carries some risk for 2027-28 until Congress settles it.
What happens on Dec. 11?
On Dec. 11, 2026, the continuing resolution that funds the federal government expires. Congress can pass another stopgap, pass full-year fiscal 2027 bills, or let funding lapse. None of those outcomes takes back Title I money already appropriated for the 2026-27 school year, because that money came from the fiscal 2026 law.
The stopgap was signed Sept. 2 after the Senate passed it 90-6 and the House 370-48, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget.
The last lapse offers a precedent. During the 43-day shutdown that began Oct. 1, 2025, the Education Department said Title I and IDEA funds would be available as usual, and districts could still draw down grants awarded over the summer, K-12 Dive reported. A future lapse could play out differently, especially with the new drawdown reviews in place, so treat that as history rather than a promise.
What happens when a school loses Title I funding?
A school can lose Title I money in two different ways. A national cut flows through federal formulas to states and districts, which then allocate to schools, so each district feels it differently. Separately, a school's own Title I status depends on its poverty rate, so a school can lose funding even when the national total holds steady.
For scale, about 63 percent of traditional public schools were Title I eligible in 2021-22, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.
If your school is worried about its own allocation, the district Title I office is the place to ask. It sees the district's allocation from MSDE and decides how much goes to each school.
What Maryland schools can do now
Maryland schools can plan with more confidence than the headlines suggest. This year's Title I money is set, so programs already in the 2026-27 budget can go ahead. The open question is 2027-28, and that's where a backup plan helps.
Run this year's plan. Programs already budgeted from 2026-27 Title I money don't depend on the December decisions. A family money night paid from Title I family engagement funds is one example.
Plan next year with two sources. Anything you'd like to fund from Title IV-A or 21st CCLC in 2027-28 should have a second option, such as Title I schoolwide funds, family engagement funds or state money.
Look at state money too. Maryland community schools receive Concentration of Poverty Grant funds under the Blueprint, which we covered in our post on how the Blueprint for Maryland's Future handles financial literacy.
Keep drawdown notes short and specific. Under the new Defend the Spend rule, a clear program name, cost category and date range will move faster than a vague description.
Frequently asked questions
Is Title 1 funding being cut?
Not for the 2026-27 school year. Congress set Title I at $18.43 billion in the fiscal 2026 law signed Feb. 3, 2026. For fiscal 2027, the House Appropriations Committee proposes $16.5 billion and the White House proposes keeping $18.43 billion. Neither is law yet.
Do states still receive federal funding for education?
Yes. Title I money for 2026-27 was scheduled in two installments, July and October 2026, and Education Week reported both would go through the Education Department's G5 system. Management of Title I is moving to the Department of Labor, but Congress still appropriates the money.
What will happen if the Department of Education is eliminated?
Title I is set in federal law and funded by Congress, so moving staff or management to other agencies doesn't by itself end the program. Under a November 2025 agreement, day-to-day management of Title I, Part A is moving to the Department of Labor. Closing the Department of Education entirely would take an act of Congress.
How many schools receive Title 1 funding?
About 63 percent of traditional public schools and 62 percent of public charter schools were Title I eligible in the 2021-22 school year, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.
The short version
Title I money for 2026-27 is set in law, and the first installment went out in July. The open fight is over fiscal 2027: the White House would keep Title I flat and end dedicated funding for Title IV-A and 21st CCLC, while the House bill would cut Title I and keep the other two. The next date to watch is Dec. 11.
We'll update this page after Congress acts. If you're planning financial literacy programs for 2027-28, Diapers 2 Deposits can help you map them to whichever funding streams hold up. See how we work with schools.
