Decline in English Learners Linked to Education Budget Cuts
A report by the American Accountability Foundation highlights a notable drop in the number of English learners enrolled in Florida and Texas public schools for the 2025-2026 school year. This decrease is projected to result in an estimated reduction of $835 million to $890 million in education funding for both states.
Thomas Jones from the American Accountability Foundation, in a memo dated July 23 to the Republican Governors Association, connected these enrollment shifts to immigration enforcement policies enacted during the Trump administration, which followed a period of increased immigration under former President Joe Biden.
The report noted, “Good news in Florida. Great news in Texas, where enrollment declines far outpace overall enrollment trends.”
In Florida, students receiving English language instruction are designated as “LY.” Their numbers rose from 277,473 in the 2021-22 school year to 368,068 in 2024-25, marking an increase of 90,595, or about 32.7 percent. Yet, from 2025 to 2026, this figure is expected to drop by 23,641 to 344,427, representing a 6.4 percent decline—the first of its kind in the period examined by the AAF.
The AAF pointed out that the number of students participating in post-exit monitoring is growing, suggesting students are “not dropping out midway through the program.” Instead, the decline reflects a reduction in new English learners entering Florida schools.
Florida’s Education Financing Program allocates funding based on an English for Speakers of Other Languages cost factor, which is set at 1.165 or 16.5% above baseline amounts. With a base allocation of $5,372.60, the average total funding per student for 2025-26 is projected at around $9,122.93. AAF estimates that a decrease of 23,641 students could correspond to a funding loss of between $215 million and $235 million.
Meanwhile, in Texas, students learning English are classified as “emerging bilingual.” Their numbers grew from 1,108,883 in 2020-21 to 1,345,917 in 2023-24, maintaining stability into the next school year. However, preliminary data for 2025-2026 indicates a decline of 54,749 students, reducing the total to 1,290,293, a drop of about 4.1%.
The AAF noted that overall public school enrollment in Texas only fell by 1.4% during the same timeframe, indicating that “the emerging bilingual population declined approximately three times faster than the student body as a whole.”
Texas supports emergency bilingual students through the Bilingual Education Quota. AAF estimates the total state and local funding for these students at around $11,950 each for the 2025-2026 year. Factoring in the reduction of 54,749 students, this could lead to a funding shortfall of approximately $620 million to $655 million, including roughly $370 million to $390 million from state contributions.
The group suggested that evaluating the full cost per student, rather than just adding a premium for language programs, is necessary. Once a student exits the public school system entirely, funding ceases. Overall, AAF estimates that the decline over the past year may correlate to a budget decrease of $835 million to $890 million across both states.
“The data is clear: Ending Biden’s open borders will ease the burden on education budgets,” the AAF concluded, emphasizing that supporting stricter border security measures and deportation policies would lead to increased funding for local schools, potentially nearing $1 billion annually for Florida and Texas combined.
