This document examines the options for federal financing of postsecondary vocational education. The first section describes the federal funds that now support public vocational education, emphasizing funds distributed to institutions through the Carl D. Perkins Vocational Education Act and funds distributed to students via financial aid. The second section raises the question of what federal policy ought to accomplish, given the fact that federal funding is now and probably will continue to be a very small fraction of total support for public vocational education. The third section considers a series of potential federal goals for public vocational education and then analyzes the pros and cons of different ways of achieving them. The fourth section outlines several different ways in which the division of funds between the secondary and postsecondary levels can be determined. The fifth section presents several models of what federal programs are and can be and suggests federal approaches that are different from those embodied in the Perkins Act. (CML)