CORRECTION: This story, originally published at 3:59pm July 23, has been updated to reflect PROPOSED federal budget changes, not results of the recent federal budget. Corrections are italicized.
Highline District’s federal cut proposed by President Trump in his next budget is just 0.4% of the total budget — or $103 per student. For perspective, Highline will spend approximately $25,000 per student in the coming school year.
The federal government recently released a proposed budget bill that changes taxes and reallocates funding. This is not the bill that just passed, it is the next budget. One major change affects how much federal money local school districts will receive in the 2026–27 school year—and how those funds can be used. While some districts across Washington are facing severe losses, the cuts for Highline and nearby South King County school districts are modest by comparison.
The Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, OSPI, recently announced how reductions will impact Washington state for the 2026-27 school year. This story looks at the impacts on Highline and other south King County districts. The bottom line:
- Highline’s federal support would be cut by $1.8 million in the 2026-27 school year
- This works out to $103 per student
- The federal reduction would be 5.7% of the $32 million in federal funds forecasted in the Highline budget for the 2025-26 school year.
- If enacted, the federal funding cut would be 0.4%, or less than one half of one percent, of the total Highline budget for the 2025-26 school year of $428 million.
Most districts in south King County are facing the same level of cuts. The exception is Tukwila, with a cut of $273 per student.
By comparison, several other districts across the state could face cuts of $500 up to $2,353 per student, according to data on this map created by OSPI staff.
As there are changes to both the dollar amounts and the rules of how federal funds can be used, school districts are in the early stages of assessing impacts. The difference in cuts is due to different numbers in various programs that received government funding.
OSPI’s press release from June 5th breaks down the programs that will be hardest hit – eliminated, or slashed by 70% – including:
- Migrant Education (Title I-C) and English Language Acquisition (Title III-A) — both eliminated entirely
- Title II-A (professional learning for teachers)
- Title IV-A/B (equity and after-school programs)
- Support for homeless students (McKinney-Vento)
- Youth in institutions, school safety, and school meals
Highline Schools and many other districts could face a double challenge: less money, and unclear rules. OSPI staff noted in email, “We do not know what the rules will be regarding spending yet.”
Adding to the confusion is Revenue Code 6100 – Special Purpose—OSPI Unassigned. It appears to funnel millions of unspecified federal funds through OSPI, so I asked what this is. Staff said, “These are federal grants that are distributed through OSPI but not accounted for in other revenue codes. This may include anything from federal innovative literacy grants to targeted homeless education grants. The district should be able to identify the grants they charged to revenue code 6100—we don’t have that level of detail for a specific district.”
As we learn more about the federal requirements and how they may impact Highline Schools, we’ll provide updates.
[AUTHOR’s NOTE: This story has been updated to make it clear these are proposed changes; they were not part of the budget bill that was just signed by President Trump.]
