White House proposes new rules giving political appointees final approval on research grants

White House proposes new rules giving political appointees final approval on research grants

By Dan Vergano edited by Claire Cameron

On Thursday, the White House unveiled draft regulations that could grant political appointees the ultimate authority over federal research grants and funding across various government agencies.

Set to be officially published in the Federal Register on Friday, this 412-page proposal seeks to centralize control of government fund allocations, including scientific research grants, under the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Russell Vought, who spearheaded the Heritage Foundation’s Project 2025 for the Trump administration, leads the OMB.

The proposal’s “Background” section claims, “Recent years have provided evidence of the need for meaningful reform in Federal grants administration,” while criticizing a perceived “woke” policy agenda under the Biden administration that purportedly favored certain identity groups. The new regulations would require political appointees at scientific agencies to approve research awards for alignment with presidential priorities, including those related to race and gender.

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The proposal specifies that “senior appointees must conduct these reviews and apply specific principles when evaluating proposals,” marking a shift from the previous norm where apolitical expert review committees approved research grants.

According to the proposal, scientific peer review of research proposals, a longstanding standard for grant approval at institutions such as the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation, will remain advisory and not replace agency discretion.

Colette Delawalla, founder of the science advocacy group Stand Up for Science, states, “We warned of this exact form of government overreach in science a year ago. It replaces expertise with political appointees, globally decouples the U.S. and completely guts our scientific ecosystem.”

The OMB’s plan follows a previous executive order issued by the White House, which raised alarms among lawmakers and scientists last year. Experts expressed concerns that political appointees at agencies like the NIH, which awards tens of thousands of research grants annually, may lack the ability to assess grant proposals based on scientific merit. The executive order was perceived as a response to court rulings that declared the administration’s abrupt termination of thousands of grants illegal in its first year. The new rules would allow political appointees to terminate grants based on agency discretion, according to the proposal.

The proposed changes to federal grant rules do not affect the overhead cost rates for research grants, which the administration previously attempted to cap at 15 percent last year—an effort that Congress rejected. However, the proposal suggests favoring institutions with lower indirect cost rates.

The public has a 45-day window to comment on the proposed regulations, which Matt Owens, president of the Council on Government Relations, describes as unusually short for such extensive changes. His organization represents over 150 research universities.

Editor’s Note (5/28/26): This story is in development and may be updated.

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