Each week, Liebert Cassidy Whitmore provides a summary of newly issued Executive Orders and other significant Presidential and federal actions that have a foreseeable impact on governance, compliance, and operational policies for California employers. The summaries below outline the key provisions of each action, along with our brief analysis of their potential implications for municipal agencies, school districts, nonprofits, and private schools.
Executive Order: Improving Education Outcomes by Empowering Parents, States, and Communities (March 20, 2025)
On Thursday, President Trump signed an Executive Order directing the closure of the Department of Education to the extent permitted by law. The Order, “Improving Education Outcomes by Empowering Parents, States, and Communities,” aims to deemphasize federal authority over education in favor of state and local control.
The Order specifically directs the Secretary of Education to “take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Department of Education and return authority over education to the States and local communities while ensuring the effective and uninterrupted delivery of services, programs, and benefits on which Americans rely.” The Order also provides that, to the extent the Department of Education continues to disburse federal funds, the Secretary of Education shall insure that the funding recipient “terminate illegal discrimination obscured under the label ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ or similar terms and programs promoting gender ideology.”
LCW will provide updates regarding the implementation of the Order.
Executive Order: Achieving Efficiency Through State and Local Preparedness (March 19, 2025)
On March 19, 2025, President Trump issued an Executive Order titled “Achieving Efficiency Through State and Local Preparedness.” This Order establishes a policy of encouraging state and local governments to take a more active role in preparing for national risks, such as cyberattacks, wildfires, hurricanes, and space weather, with the overall goal of enhancing national resilience and security. The Order mandates the creation of a federal National Resilience Strategy, a review of various critical infrastructure and emergency preparedness policies, and a National Risk Register to identify and quantify natural and malign risks to national infrastructure. The Order also calls for clarification and streamlining of the various federal national preparedness functions, with the goal of improving communication and collaboration between federal officials and state and local governments.
This Order does not set forth any immediate obligations for local agencies, but LCW will continue to monitor this Order to track activity that impacts California public employers.