Executive Branch News
White House Proposes Sweeping Changes to Federal Grant Rules ā Comments Due July 13
At the end of May, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued a proposed rule, Regulation for Federal Financial Assistance, that would make major changes to the Uniform Guidance governing federal financial assistance, including federal research grants. The rule would implement proposals made by the Trump Administration through various executive orders over the last year, including the Improving Oversight of Federal Grantmaking order and Restoring Gold Standard Science order, among others. Among the changes are, but not limited to: Proposed changes to the Uniform Guidance have been anticipated for several months. Still the sweeping nature of the changes, if implemented, would fundamentally alter the…
Register Now: Shaping the Next Era of NIMHD Science Webinar
Registration is now open for The National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)ās upcoming public webinar Shaping the Next Era of NIMHD Science: Current Status, Emerging Opportunities, and Scientific Priorities. In this public webinar, NIMHD leadership will provide updates on NIMHDās vision of health disparities science, emerging research opportunities to address health disparities and improve population health, as well as current scientific priorities. Presentations will be followed by a Q&A. Speakers include: The webinar will be taking place on June 22 at 1:00pm EST. Register now via the online form. Send any questions or comments to nimhdinfo@nimhd.nih.gov.
š¦Ā SPOTLIGHT ON NSF: Scientific Community Fights for NSF
It has been a particularly challenging few months for the National Science Foundation (NSF), between a massive, proposed budget cut, removal of members of the National Science Board (NSB), and the proposal to eliminate the Social, Behavioral, and Economic Sciences Directorate (SBE). The research community has spent much of the Spring pushing back and urging Congress to defend NSF. Saving the SBE Directorate COSSA along with our many partners across the STEM enterprise have been working tirelessly to urge Congress to reject the Presidentās proposal to eliminate the SBE Directorate in FY 2027. With House and Senate appropriators currently at work on their FY…
Nominations Open for 2026 NIH Matilda White Riley Honoree
The Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR) at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) is now accepting nominations for outstanding behavioral and social scientists as Distinguished Lecturer candidates at the 19th Matilda White Riley Honors. The Matilda White Riley Honors are an annual event recognizing transformative work in the fields of social and behavioral science along with early-career researchers. Nominees should have a research career that has āadvanced behavioral and social scientific knowledge in areas within NIHās mission and that expands upon Dr. White Rileyās work.ā More information is available on the OBSSR website. Nominee information should be saved…
The State of U.S. Science and Engineering 2026 Released
The National Science Board (NSB) recently released The State of U.S. Science and Engineering 2026Ā report. Every two years, the NSB prepares this report, which examines the state of U.S. science and engineering over time and within a global context. It summarizes key findings in areas such as education and workforce; U.S. and international research and development performance, including in high-tech industries; and technology transfer, invention and innovation. In the 2026 report, the NSB highlights many key takeaways including: This report, the thematic reports, and the online data tool together make up the full suite of products. You can access them…
Trump Administration Fires National Science Board
On April 24, all 22 members of the National Science Board (NSB) received an email from the Trump Administration stating that they have been āterminated, effective immediately.ā The NSB, which was established by statute in 1950, serves as the policymaking and oversight body of the National Science Foundation (NSF) and as an independent advisor to the President and Congress on federal science policy. COSSA issued a statement on the dismissal. White House officials are stating that the decision responds to a 2021 Supreme Court case, U.S. v. Arthrex, that āraised constitutional questions about whether non-Senate confirmed appointees can exercise the authorities that Congress…
NSF to Host Webinar on Funding Opportunities for Research Security Practices
On April 29, the National Science Foundation (NSF) willĀ host a webinarĀ on the different funding opportunities offered across the foundationās directorates related to research security practices. The following NSF programs will participate: Research on Research Security; Growing Research Access for Nationally Transformative Economic Development; Law & Science; Security and Preparedness; Security, Privacy, and Trust in Cyberspace; Science of Science: Discovery, Communication and Impact; and Cybersecurity Innovation for Cyberinfrastructure. RegisterĀ here.Ā Ā
NIH Requesting Comments on Strategic Plan
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) released a request for information (RFI) asking for stakeholder comments on the proposed framework for the NIH-Wide Strategic Plan for Fiscal Years (FYs) 2027-2031 slated for an FY 2027 release. Rather than focus on specific research opportunities or institute initiatives, NIH releases a strategic plan every five years to highlight the achievements of the agency and set broader priorities. The proposed framework for the new strategic plan highlights several goals, including improving foundational knowledge of human health and disease, addressing public health challenges across the lifespan, developing and advancing interventions, treatments, and cures, improving infrastructure and…
Trump Announces New Members to PCAST
On March 25, President Trump announced his first appointments to the Presidentās Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST), the body of external advisors charged with making science, technology, and innovation policy recommendations to the President and the White House. In a departure to past PCASTs, the appointees include several private sector executives in the tech sphere, including returning members Lisa Su and Michael Dell who served in the Council during the Biden and Bush Administrations, respectively, in addition to Mark Zuckerberg and Larry Ellison. Additional members are expected to be appointed at a later date. Notably, none of the appointees have…
US Science Funding Delayed Despite Congress Rejecting Cuts
According to reporting by Nature, federal science agencies continue to experience delays in receiving the okay to start spending their fiscal year (FY) 2026 appropriations from Congress. As previously reported, Congress completed its work on FY 2026 appropriations for most federal science agencies earlier this year. However, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has been slow to approve agency spending plans, which are required to be delivered to OMB within 30 days of enactment of the appropriations bills. Traditionally, agencies had authority to start spending portions of their appropriations immediately and continuing in monthly increments until its spending plan…
Interim NSF Leadership Briefs NSB on Reorganization
The National Science Board (NSB), the governing and oversight body of the National Science Foundation (NSF), met on February 25. The agenda included a briefing on NSFās new āmanagement structure,ā presented by Brian Stone, who is performing the duties of the NSF Director, and Micah Cheatham, NSFās Chief Management Officer. The speakers discussed recent efforts to reduce the NSF workforce in response to White House guidance and executive orders on āoptimizing the federal workforce.ā In addition to reductions in force (RIFs) taken over the last year, NSFās efforts have focused on reducing the ratio of executives to non-executives within the workforce, adding non-executive supervisors,…
Department of Education Receives Recommendations to Reform IES
On February 27, Department of Education Senior Advisor Dr. Amber Northern delivered a report, Reimagining the Institute of Education Sciences, to Secretary Linda McMahon with recommendations on how to reform the Institute of Education Sciences (IES). The report comes after Northern was appointed to the role in May in an effort to āmodernizeā the agency (see previous coverage). In September, the Department of Education also released a request for public comment on restructuring the agency, which reportedly influenced Northernās recommendations (see previous coverage). About the report, she said: āIES has set the standard for high-quality education research these last 25 years,…
Science Agency Leadership Shakeups Continue
The White House recently announced plans to nominate Jim OāNeill as the next Director of the National Science Foundation (NSF), placing a longtime health policy official and private-sector investor at the helm of the nationās premier basic science funding agency. OāNeill most recently served as acting director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (see previous coverage). Earlier in his career, OāNeill worked at the Department of Health and Human Services during the administration of George W. Bush. He later moved into the private sector, investing in emerging technologies, including through the Thiel Foundationās Breakout Labs program, which supports…
President Trump Executive Actions
Trump Administration Actions (all actions available here): Find COSSA’s full list of Trump’s Executive Actions and more information here or on the Social Science Space Tracker.
Stuart Levenbach Quietly Assumes Role as U.S. Chief Statistician
According to the White House Office of Management and Budgetās (OMB) Interagency Council on Statistical Policy, Stuart Levenbach has been appointed to serve as Chair of the Council, a position that is, by law, held by the U.S. Chief Statistician. OMB quietly updated its website to reflect his new role, replacing Mark Calabria, who assumed the role of Chief Statistician after the departure of Karin Orvis at the start of the Trump Administrationās second term in 2025. Notably, the position does not require Senate confirmation. Previously, Levenbach had been nominated by the Trump Administration to serve as the head of the Consumer…
NIH Reclassifies Basic Experimental Studies Involving Humans
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) announced that Basic Experimental Studies Involving Humans (BESH) will no longer be classified as clinical trials under the NIH Clinical Trial Definition. The change applies to applications submitted on or after May 25, 2026. NIH originally expanded its clinical trial definition in 2014 to include BESH as part of an effort to improve transparency and results reporting. The revised definition meant that social and behavioral science research funded by NIH that involved human subjects would need to abide by the same reporting rules as studies more traditionally viewed as clinical trials. The move was controversial at the time…
OPM Final Rule Expands Excepted Service, Raises Workforce Concerns
The White House Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has finalized a sweeping rule that expands the use of the excepted service by creating āSchedule Policy/Career,ā a new category covering career employees in policy-influencing roles (see previous coverage). While OPM frames the change as a way to improve accountability and responsiveness, critics warn it weakens long-standing civil service protections. Under the rule, career employees (e.g., nonpolitical appointees) whose roles are of a āconfidential, policy-determining, policy-making, or policy-advocating characterā may be reclassified into Schedule Policy/Career. They will retain competitive status but lose key procedural protections, including appeal rights for adverse actions and performance-based removals. OPM…
NIH Requests Public Input on New Human Data Protection Policies
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is seeking public comment on a proposed update to its human research data policies, including a new NIH Controlled-Access Data Policy and revisions to the NIH Genomic Data Sharing (GDS) Policy. According to the request for information (RFI), the goal is to strengthen privacy and security protections, clarify requirements, and reduce duplicative burdens across NIH programs. The proposed Controlled-Access Data Policy would define which human participant data must be shared through controlled-access systems, including personal identifiers, genomic and other āomicsā data, health and financial information, facial imaging, and individual-level clinical trial data. It would also establish consistent security and…
Congress Returns from Two-Week; Appropriations Front and Center
AsĀ previously reported by COSSA, Congress closed out 2025 with a continuing resolution (CR) that ended a historic 43-day government shutdown and punted the appropriations deadline for fiscal year (FY) 2026 to January 31. While there were rumors of a potential second year-long CR for FY 2026, Congress returned from their two-week recess with agreements on final funding levels for several remaining bills. Last week, House and Senate leaders released a three-bill package that includes the Commerce, Justice, and Science (CJS) billāwhich provides funding for the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Census Bureau, the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the National Institute…
Latest from the White House (January 13)
In December, the White House released theĀ Presidentās Management AgendaĀ (PMA). Administrations have beenĀ issuing PMAs since the George W. Bush presidency in 2001. The agendas represent the Presidentās strategy for improving the management and performance of the federal government by identifying specific goals and metrics. Its signature feature has been a scorecard that tracks progress by each federal agency across several measures, such as human capital or budget performance. Each Administration puts their own spin on the PMA; however, they have traditionally built off their predecessorās agendas to ensure continuity in government improvement. However, the Trump Administrationās PMA released last month reads…