Congressman Tim Walberg has been named the chair of the influential U.S. House Committee on Education and Workforce as the new Congress takes over.

Walberg tells us the committee will likely be discussing President-elect Donald Trump’s calls to end the U.S. Department of Education. While he’s not sure it will be possible, he says the committee can do things to limit the department’s power. Walberg doesn’t believe the department has been effective.

“I look back on the history that has taken place since 1979 when President Carter, in fact, implemented for the first time in history the U.S. Department of Education,” Walberg said. “We’ve spent a trillion dollars since that time and we’ve seen really no positive impact coming. In fact, the reports that we’ve seen in recent years, we continue to slide.”

Walberg says the federal government provides only about 9% of funding for k-12 education, and yet it’s responsible for about 90% of the regulations such schools face. He believes that can be addressed.

On Monday, Walberg issued a statement blasting the Biden administration’s latest student loan forgiveness actions, telling us such debt relief will end once the new administration comes in. He says Biden should have been working to reduce the cost of college instead of giving away handouts. The administration Monday announced it’s giving student loan relief to 150,000 people who were defrauded by their colleges, have disabilities, or are public service workers.

Other education priorities for Walberg will be addressing on-campus anti-Semitism and making sure college students better understand the loans the taking out.