Updates on Federal Actions Related to Research

Email Updates

The following message was sent to graduate students, tenure track and research faculty, department grant administrators, OVPRI centers and institutes, core facility staff, Government and Community Relations, Office of General Counsel, and OVPRI staff on Wednesday, September 2, 2026.

Summary

• Save the date: Research Town Hall October 19 in Knight Library Browsing Room.
• Addressing the National Science Foundation (NSF) September 10 “Dear Colleague” letter related to how the agency structures and funds its portfolio.
• Important guidance to stay ahead of changing policies and proposal criteria.
• Stalled: White House proposal for political appointee oversight of National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants.
• Proposed cuts to U.S. Department of Education (ED) funding, an update on its proposed grantmaking rule, and forthcoming guidance concerning the written justifications for payment requests memo.

Welcome back to our campuses! Echoing President Scholz’s back-to-school message on Monday, there is something special about this time of year. New classes, colleagues, and students—each of these is a reason to take a moment to celebrate the beginning of the academic year.

This message might be new to some of you. This semi-regular message series provides succinct, clear updates for the UO research community about federal actions that affect our work. We intentionally send this message only when we feel it is mission critical for our researchers to be aware of the topics discussed within. You can find past messages and other resources on our Updates on Federal Actions Related to Research webpage.

It’s a testament to the power of the advocacy efforts of our community and of our elected representatives that these emails are now occasional instead of weekly. Thank you for your ongoing efforts to support the UO and our national research enterprise to help ensure that it thrives in the future!

Save the Date

Please mark your calendar for the Research Town Hall October 19 in Knight Browsing Room with President Karl Scholz opening the event. We look forward to seeing you there!

Working Together to Monitor Changes to Federal Agency Practices

For example, on September 10, 2026, NSF issued a “Dear Colleague” letter, signaling that the agency will shift how it structures and funds its portfolio by outlining “frontier initiatives,” among other topics, including how NSF will review and award proposals.

Going forward, OVPRI will pay close attention to individual funding opportunities as NSF and other agencies roll out changes, because the mechanisms, review approaches, award structures, and expectations may vary more than what we’ve seen in the past. We want to ensure, prior to proposal submission, whether we can accept any unusual terms of conditions.

We are asking that the UO research community aid in our effort to stay ahead of these changes by taking the following actions:

• Keep an eye on announcements from the federal agency overseeing your grant for any updates on funding or compliance requirements.
• Continue to closely scrutinize certifications for access to data. Continue to ensure that you have access to and control over datasets if hosted by a different entity than the UO.
• Continue submitting proposals. Closely monitor funding announcements to see if the proposal criteria changes.
• Forward any communications from granting agencies relating to stop work orders, modifications to existing grants, requests for attestations, and spending justification requests. Do not sign attestations without first contacting Sponsored Projects Services.

OMB Oversight of NIH

A purported executive order by President Trump to create a commission of political appointees, led by White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought, to review and hold veto power over NIH grant awards appears to no longer be on the table. We also share an article from National Public Radio about how NIH funding has been reshaped under the Trump administration.

Department of Education Grant Regulation

In August, the U.S. Department of Education released proposed updates to its grant regulations that could significantly affect how the Department reviews proposals and administers research grants. Among other changes, the proposal would allow ED to give competitive preference to applicants that voluntarily accept lower indirect cost rates and would expand the department’s discretion to terminate awards.

Many universities, including the University of Oregon, submitted institutional responses related to the proposed changes. That comment period ended last week. Inside Higher Ed provides analysis (must be logged in through your institutional account to access).

We continue to monitor federal actions related to the Department of Education, including the proposal announced Friday, September 25, to rescind $95 million in education funding already approved by Congress as part of a “pocket rescission” by OMB. This proposed rescission would affect funding for international education programs and for migrant students.

Furthermore, a memo sent September 28 to all ED grantees provides additional guidance on the January 20, 2025, executive order 14222 (also known as “Defend the Spend”, this is the executive order that established the Department of Government Efficiency that has since disbanded). The memo stated that beginning November 1, 2026, written justifications for payment requests will be required for all ED grants. Sponsored Projects Services is reviewing this memo and will provide guidance to grantees to comply in the least burdensome way.

Researchers at this university are leaders in education research. There is ample evidence showing how transformative education research continues to be and how it improves education delivery, not only in this country but also abroad, to help children succeed. Thank you for your efforts to advocate for the Institute of Education Sciences—they make a difference.