Federal and State Policy Change Updates

Dear Faculty, Staff and Graduate Students,

Today marks National Employee Appreciation Day, and I want to thank each and every one of you for all you do to make Texas A&M University a leader in research, education and service to Texas, the nation and the world. We have the best faculty, staff and students, and I’m grateful to work alongside you. Thank you today and every day for all you do.

This week, we continue to move forward in adapting to the changes at both the national and state levels and appreciate your feedback and support in this process.

After my message last Friday, the Department of Education released a Frequently Asked Questions document about “Racial Preferences and Stereotypes Under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act.” This was intended to anticipate and answer questions that may be raised in response to the previous Dear Colleague Letter: Title VI of the Civil Rights Act in Light of Students for Fair Admissions v. Harvard issued by the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) on Feb. 14, 2025. We have established a team that will collaborate with the Office of General Counsel (OGC) to support future decision-making.

On Wednesday, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction halting the implementation, application or enforcement of the National Institutes of Health’s Feb. 7 supplemental guidance imposing a cap of 15% on F&A costs. The injunction applies to all institutions nationwide. The injunction follows a hearing held on Feb. 21, 2025, during which both the government and representatives from separate lawsuits presented arguments concerning the motion for preliminary injunction. The government is expected to appeal the decision, and we will continue advocating for our research programs.

Federal agencies are in the process of reviewing all contracts and grants, and that is expected to continue through this month and be followed by some federal implementation process. In anticipation of this review as well as the outcomes of pending judicial decisions regarding temporary restraining orders and injunctions, our teams are developing new processes and workflows for a streamlined approach to facilitating and responding to stop-work orders and terminations for research grants. Further, we are developing a framework for supporting faculty and staff who may be affected by funding disruptions. We’ve been meeting with internal faculty groups, as well as university and System leadership to get feedback on this framework, and we will work to finalize that over the next couple of months.

While we continue to seek more clarity in this transition, it may be helpful to note that we have not received a large number of terminations or stop-work orders yet, although it has the potential to increase. We also recognize the impact on those projects affected so far and are considering how to support them on a case-by-case basis in coordination with our partner System agencies.  

Also, we continue to track the potential for a federal government shutdown and have launched a webpage on the Government Relations website dedicated to this topic, as the current continuing resolution will expire on March 14, 2025. However, legislators continue to make progress toward passing a continuing resolution, and the U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote early next week on a stop-gap funding measure, which if passed, would then move on to the Senate for a vote before Friday’s deadline.

We are aware of recent media reports on two topics that you may have also seen: 1) reports that a draft executive order to close the U.S. Department of Education is in circulation, and 2) that state agencies are ending telework policies. As of this email, no new executive order on the Department of Education has been issued, and the university has not received a new directive on remote work locations to date.

Again, I’m truly grateful for all of you and everything you do to support our students, conduct life-changing research and support our mission. For those of you who will be enjoying Spring Break next week, I hope you find relaxation with friends and family. I encourage you to stay informed by reviewing updates and materials on the Federal Transition webpage, as well as the Division of Research’s agency-specific guidance for principal investigators. For inquiries or to request a visit from a leadership team member, please reach out to my office at provost@tamu.edu.

Thank you,

Alan
Alan Sams
Provost and Executive Vice President