Trump faces backlash over plan to dip into Pell reserves

Money would be used for space exploration

Associated Press

Education advocates say a Trump administration plan to use federal Pell Grant money to fund space exploration would jeopardize aid for future college students and could trigger a budgeting crisis within just a few years.

The plan aims to redirect $1.9 billion from a Pell Grant surplus to jump-start other projects, primarily a NASA initiative to put astronauts back on the moon. In announcing the plan Monday, administration officials said it would keep the Pell program, the largest source of federal aid for low-income students, on sound fiscal footing and would not harm students.

But a chorus of education organizations pushed back Tuesday.

“Sure, there is no immediate impact, but what you have done is undercut the stability of a program that’s really critical for helping students afford college,” said Jon Fansmith, director of government relations for the American Council on Education, which represents more than 1,700 college presidents. “This really is an expression of priorities by the administration.”

All told, the White House wants to steer $3.9 billion away from the Pell program’s surplus, which is projected to reach almost $8 billion going into 2020. Along with the latest proposal, the administration’s initial budget plan sought to take $2 billion from the windfall to support other programs.

An Education Department staff member familiar with the budget process said the department was not consulted on the proposal, which came from the Office of Management and Budget. The person was not authorized to speak publicly about the decision making and requested anonymity.