F&A Costs Cap; McMahon; NSF Grants
BU IN DC
Mary Churchill of the Wheelock College of Education & Human Development attended the American Council on Education Women’s Network Leadership Conference on February 13th and 14th.
COURT PAUSES PROPOSED NIH F&A CAP
On Monday evening, a judge temporarily blocked the Trump Administration’s proposal to cap facilities and administrative (F&A) cost rates at 15% for new and continuing National Institutes of Health (NIH) awards. On February 21st, a district court will hear arguments in lawsuits filed by 22 state attorneys general, the Association of American Medical Colleges, and the Association of American Universities challenging the proposal. Members of Congress from both parties, including the Massachusetts Congressional delegation, voiced their strong opposition to the change. On Wednesday, Massachusetts Senators Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey urged the leaders of the NIH and the National Science Foundation to rescind the NIH funding cuts and any related freezes.
TRANSITION UPDATES: DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
On Thursday, the U.S. Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee held a confirmation hearing for Linda McMahon, President Donald J. Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Education. During the hearing, McMahon answered questions about dismantling the agency, vowed to protect Pell Grants, and asserted that colleges failing to address antisemitism would “face defunding.” She also confirmed that only Congress can eliminate the Department. The Committee is expected to vote on her nomination next week.
On Tuesday, President Trump nominated Nicholas Kent as the Under Secretary of Education. If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Kent will oversee the agency’s higher education activities. He was previously the deputy secretary of education in Virginia and a leader in the trade association representing for-profit colleges.
BUZZ BITS…
- On Tuesday, Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) released a database of over 3,400 National Science Foundation (NSF) grants that the office identified as “woke DEI” grants. Cruz chairs the Senate Commerce, Science, and Technology Committee, which has jurisdiction over the NSF. The database was the basis for a report he issued in October 2024 criticizing the agency.
- The House Committee on Education and the Workforce approved the Defending Education Transparency and Ending Rogue Regimes Engaging in Nefarious Transactions (DETERRENT) Act on a party-line vote on Wednesday. The bill would limit research collaborations with China and other “countries of concern” and require research personnel to report foreign gifts. The U.S. House of Representatives passed a previous version of the DETERRENT Act in 2024, but the bill did not advance in the U.S. Senate.
- The Office of Research hosted a “Federal Outlook for Research Under the New Administration and Congress” webinar in collaboration with Federal Relations on Wednesday. The presentation slides provide insights into the new administration’s research priorities and strategies to position your research in the new environment.