Delivered via email: November 13, 2026

November Election: Impact for School Districts

The November Congressional elections resulted in the highest turnover of House of Representatives members since World War II, with 25% projected to be new members. In Illinois, Representatives Melissa Bean, Daniel Biss, La Shawn Ford, Patty Garcia, and Donna Miller will join the Illinois delegation. The Senate had its second-greatest turnover in history, with 20% of the Senate projected to be new members. In Illinois, Senator Juliana Stratton will replace retiring Senator Dick Durbin.

The election results, along with changes in Congressional and Committee leadership, will mean a shift in legislative and funding priorities as well as an increased focus on oversight of the Department of Education. IASB is working to build relationships with the new members and staff and educate them about IASB’s legislative and funding priorities.

As Congress returns to work after the election, the House and Senate Democratic and Republican Caucuses are focused on electing new leadership and Committee chairs. On November 10, Republicans elected Senator John Thune (South Dakota) and Freedom Caucus co-founder Representative Jim Jordan (Ohio) as leaders of the minority party. House Democrats will elect their Congressional leaders the third week of November, with the official vote for Speaker in January. Though some efforts are underway to try to vote earlier, Senate Democrats are currently scheduled to elect leaders on December 1. With no announced challengers, Representative Hakeem Jeffries (New York) is expected to be elected House Speaker. Senator Chuck Schumer (New York) is facing a challenge from Senator Chris Van Hollen (Maryland) for Senate Majority Leader.  

With the change to Democratic majorities, new Chairs will be appointed in all Committees, and Republican Committee leaders will become Ranking Members. Though Republicans have term limits on Committee leadership, Democrats do not, though they are considering term limits as a part of new rules. Even when term limits are in place, some leadership spots will be contested. Decisions on Committee leadership will be made in the coming weeks. Some Committee leadership spots may not be decided until the new Congress begins. Key House and Senate Committees of jurisdiction for education and funding include:

• House Education and Labor Committee: Democrats will choose between Rep. Bobby Scott (Virginia), Rep. Suzanne Bonamici (Oregon), and Rep. Jahana Hayes (Connecticut) to Chair the Committee. On the Republican side, Rep. Tim Walberg (Michigan) will become the Ranking Member.  
• House Appropriations Committee and the Labor, Health and Human Services (HHS), Education and Related Agencies Subcommittee: Rep. Rosa DeLauro (Connecticut) will now become the Chair of both the Committee and Subcommittee. On the Republican side, Rep. Tom Cole (Oklahoma) and Rep. Robert Aderholt (Alabama) will become the Ranking Members.  
• Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee: Sen. Bernie Sanders (Vermont) will become the Chair. Senator Rand Paul (Kentucky) is the highest-ranking Republican and has announced his desire to serve as the Ranking Member.  
• Senate Appropriations Committee and the Labor, HHS, Education and Related Agencies Subcommittee: Sen. Patty Murray (Washington) will become the Chair of the Committee with Sen. Jerry Moran (Kansas), challenging Sen. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), the highest-ranking Republican member, for the Ranking Member spot. For the Labor, HHS, Education and Related Agencies Subcommittee, Sen. Tammy Baldwin (Wisconsin) will become the Chair with Sen. Shelly Moore Capito (West Virginia) moving to the Ranking Member role.  

FY 27 and FY 28 Funding 

Legislatively, Congress returned to the Capitol after the election with an eye toward the expiration of the Continuing Resolution (CR) funding the government until December 11. House and Senate Appropriations leaders met the week of November 9 to discuss options. Some Appropriations leaders favor a CR to fund the government until the new Congress, when new Congressional leadership will have more of an impact on funding priorities and language that more strictly constrains the Administration to follow funding levels mandated in Appropriations legislation. However, the unpopularity of the Iran war complicates the discussion about a CR, with some leaders pushing for limits on war spending in any funding vehicle. Lack of agreement in this area could provoke an end-of-year government shutdown when the CR expires on December 11. To spur Congressional negotiations toward enactment of FY 27 funding legislation, this week outgoing Senate Appropriations Chair Susan Collins released draft versions of seven of the 12 funding bills. The Labor, HHS, Education and Related Agencies legislation has not yet been released. 

In addition to efforts to complete FY 27 funding, work is already beginning on the FY 28 budget cycle. IASB met this week with the Department of Education to ask that it prioritize increased Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) funding in alignment with IASB’s 40 by 40 initiative. 

Joint Annual Conference Legislative and Advocacy Panels 

Don’t miss two opportunities to hear IASB’s federal updates in person at the Joint Annual Conference!  

• IASB's federal legislative panel, Looking Ahead to 2027: Education Policy on Capitol Hill on Saturday November 21 at 10:30 a.m. in the Hyatt East Ballroom Level, Grand Hall I. Congressman Mike Quigley will open our panel with comments on the federal spending outlook for the new Congress. 
• 2027 Advocacy & Engagement Meet-Up on Sunday, November 22 at 8:30 a.m. in the Hyatt East Ballroom Level, Grand A. IASB will share updates on our federal priorities. 

First Boards Adopt 40 by 40 Resolutions

Has your school board begun consideration of a 40 by 40: Fulfill the IDEA Promise Resolution?  We need your support to make increased IDEA funding a reality for your students! From November to February, IASB is asking school boards to pass a resolution calling on Congress to fulfill its IDEA promise by funding IDEA at 40% by the year 2040. Currently, federal funds make up just 10%, a $1.4 billion annual deficit for Illinois schools. You can download the draft resolution and other resources on IASB’s website. Also available is IASB’s new 40 by 40 Action Center where you and your school community can share your support with Congress. The strength of our Congressional advocacy will determine our success in increasing IDEA funding in FY 28 and beyond. 

Education Tax Credit 

Thirty-two states have announced their intent to participate in the new federal education tax credit which provides a $1,700 credit for contributions to Scholarship Granting Organizations (SGOs) that help students with educational expenses in public and private schools, including private school tuition. Illinois has not yet announced its intent to participate. The Treasury Department has proposed rules for the program; however, some key areas, such as allowable education expenses, are yet to be fully defined. Comments on the proposed regulations will be accepted through December 1. 

The election produced changes in leadership in some states that have already officially opted in to the new program. It is important to note that although a state may have opted in to the program, it must also submit its list of SGOs to the Treasury Department by February 15, 2027 to participate. Though outgoing state leaders may have taken official actions for their state, new state leaders may determine not to submit that list, in effect, reversing the previous decision. The size of the Democrats’ majority also raises questions about potential action on legislation, S. 4297 and H.R. 9289, that has been sponsored in both chambers to repeal the federal tax credit program.  

Secure Rural Schools Bill Introduced in Senate 

On September 30, Senators Jim Risch, Mike Crapo, Ron Wyden, and Jeff Merkley introduced bipartisan legislation, the Secure Rural Schools Reauthorization Act of 2026, S. 5608 to reauthorize the Secure Rural Schools program (SRS). The program was established in 2000 to provide support to communities which lost tax revenue due to federal forest land. In December of 2025, Congress enacted legislation providing retroactive funding for the program for Fiscal Years 24-26. However, the program expired again at the end of FY 26. Without repeat legislative action, rural communities will be deprived of this federal assistance.