Updates on Federal Executive Orders and Research Activities

This webpage is dynamic and updated frequently. Please check back often.

Last updated June 4, 2025

 

Guidelines for the Research Community

The Office of the Vice President for Research and Innovation (OVPRI) continues to monitor the 2025 presidential administration transition. Below are some helpful guidelines.

  • Closely monitor obligated budget balances to avoid deficits while awaiting future obligations. Anticipated future funding remains subject to availability of funds and should not be considered guaranteed.
  • If you are waiting to hear back from a program officer, please be aware they may not be able to respond during the agency communications pause.
  • Ensure all technical reports and deliverables are submitted by their due dates and prioritize the submission of any that are past due.
  • Monitor policy updates: Keep an eye on announcements from the federal agency overseeing your grant for any updates on funding or compliance requirements.
  • Principal investigators are encouraged to ensure that they have access to and control over datasets.
  • Continue to submit proposals. Closely monitor the funding announcement to see if the proposal criteria changes.
  • OVPRI and the Office of General Counsel ask that you forward any communications from granting agencies relating to stop work orders, modifications to existing grants, requests for attestations, and spending justification requests.

OVPRI has adopted a process to appeal the termination of contracts and grants by federal agencies (requires DuckID to log in).

Additionally, the UO continues to monitor and communicate any immigration updates, and their potential impact to our international, Dreamer, and undocumented students, faculty, and staff.

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Recent Federal Actions

Statements in Response to Federal Actions

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Resources for Researchers

At this time, the Council on Government Relations (COGR) is providing the most complete guidance on how the executive orders could affect operations, including a summary of executive orders. COGR's mission is to empower an unparalleled US academic research ecosystem by advancing sound federal policies and regulations that are vital to US science and innovation leadership and our nation’s health, security, and prosperity. Request access to the COGR membership portal.

Please note this page is dynamic and information could be incomplete.

The Chronicle of Higher Education is tracking the actions of President Trump's administration that affect higher education. Chronicle of Higher Education's Trump's Agenda for Higher Ed Tracker (sign in with your DuckID to access Chronicle content)

FAQs for Researchers

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Email Updates

The OVPRI plans to send weekly email updates on Wednesdays.

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, June 4.

Federal awards are being issued again, proposed agency budgets published

Grant terminations: 29, totaling $6.53 million
Relevant agencies: NIH, NEA, NEH, and NSF
Active appeals: 23
Terminations lifted: 2 (NIH) 
These figures are current as of 6/4.

We are pleased to share that we are now seeing new major awards being issued by the National Science Foundation (after months without any new notices of award), including a new research award from the Mathematical and Physical Sciences Directorate and a prestigious CAREER award from the Biology Directorate. 

The University of Oregon also provided information and declarations to the State of Oregon, which is part of a multi-state lawsuit against the National Science Foundation (NSF) to prevent the agency from terminating grants and reducing F&A.  A coalition of 15 state attorneys general have asserted that capping indirect costs (also known as facilities and administrative costs, or F&A) at 15% and slashing funding for programs that broaden participation in STEM fields by groups who have been historically left out “violate the Administrative Procedure Act and the Constitution by unlawfully changing NSF policy and ignoring Congress’s intent for how NSF should function”. 

Guidance for Principal Investigators  

Given the flurry of changes at federal agencies, we strongly encourage principal investigators (PIs) to regularly check the status of targeted future solicitations prior to submission in case of last-minute solicitation cancellation or expiration, given the frequent changes in budgets/programs at federal agencies. Sponsored Projects Services (SPS) will help monitor as well. 

As a reminder, if you receive requests from funding agencies to change the budget for awards, whether in its entirety or for a specific term, please contact SPS. As noted in last week’s message, if you receive a request to sign and submit attestations related to compliance with current federal guidance and priorities, please do not sign these yourselves, but rather, work with SPS to obtain a signed institutional letter. If you receive communication from a sponsor and you are uncertain about its meaning or if you can sign, please forward it to your post-award team. They will review language with the Office of General Counsel and provide an institutional letter. 

Monitoring federal agency budgets  

Federal funding agencies are beginning to publish their official budget requests to Congress for FY26: 

  1. US Department of Education
  2. NSF
  3. US Department of Energy 

Note that these only represent requests and justifications—not the final appropriations. We expect and will support continued advocacy for federal investment in research with our peers in the Association of American Universities (AAU), the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU), Big 10, etc.  

 

Prior Emails

 

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