Federal and State Policy Change Updates

Dear Faculty, Staff and Graduate Students,

I hope you all had a nice Spring Break and are having a good week back. We have seen some movement this week on several fronts related to federal government policy changes, and state legislative hearings have begun to pick up.

As you know, our Government Relations team was closely monitoring the potential for a government shutdown last week, which I’m pleased to share was averted on Friday, March 14. On Saturday, March 15, President Trump signed into law a spending bill to fund the federal government until Sept. 30, 2025. This bill mostly maintained funding levels from fiscal year 2024.

Executive Order Regarding the U.S. Department of Education

On Thursday, March 20, President Trump signed an executive order, “Improving Education Outcomes by Empowering Parents, States, and Communities,” to facilitate the closure of the U.S. Department of Education after a reduction in force that took place last week within the department. The order directs the Secretary of Education to “take all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Department of Education and return authority over education to the states and local communities while ensuring the effective and uninterrupted delivery of services, programs and benefits on which Americans rely.”

A statement from Secretary of Education Linda McMahon further noted, “Closing the Department does not mean cutting off funds from those who depend on them — we will continue to support K-12 students, students with special needs, college student borrowers and others who rely on essential programs. We’re going to follow the law and eliminate the bureaucracy responsibly by working through Congress to ensure a lawful and orderly transition.” The Department of Education was created by Congress and would require congressional action to close the department.

As the department begins to facilitate these changes, we are closely monitoring and evaluating the impacts to the university. In addition to the broad potential impact of this action, I recognize that there may be additional impacts to your faculty research, particularly in the College of Education and Human Development and other fields. Please know that we are working with the deans to make sure they are empowered to help faculty staff and students during these changes. As always, if you’re experiencing a direct impact to a program or project, contact your dean or supervisor and email me at provost@tamu.edu.

Judicial Decisions Related to Executive Orders

On March 14, 2024, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit issued an order lifting the ban on the implementation of Executive Order 14151 “Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing” and Executive Order 14173 “Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity.” While this decision enables the federal government to resume implementation of these two orders, Texas A&M has not received any new directives from federal agencies on implementation steps. If you have received new guidance directly from a federal agency, please be sure to connect with my office or Sponsored Research Services if it involves a funded project.

State Legislative

Update The Texas Senate Committee on Education K-16 held a hearing on Thursday, March 20, which included discussion on legislation related to university governance. The Texas A&M University System General Counsel Ray Bonilla was invited by the committee and testified, providing important information about the current governance process and how it works at Texas A&M System schools. Discussions will continue on these bills and other legislation throughout the legislative session, which runs through June 2. Throughout that process, our Government Relations staff will continue to engage with the legislature to provide information about the university, its governance structure and the important role of faculty.

GA-48 Implementation

Earlier this week, the Texas A&M System finalized and distributed to all System schools an implementation plan for GA-48, “Hardening State Government.” The plan was developed through a coordinated effort involving the Office of General Counsel, System Research Security Office, Sponsored Research Services, System Procurement Services, System Human Resources, System Information Technology and the System Ethics and Compliance Office. Our GA-48 Implementation Committee, led by Dr. Michael Johnson, Interim Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs and the Associate Provost for Academic Enhancement, and Jason Boyle, Compliance Officer III for Risk Management and Insurance Services, provided valuable input to the plan developed by System leaders, and we are now in the process of reviewing that implementation plan to determine next steps. We will share the university’s planned actions before those begin to be implemented in the coming months.

Finally, I want to thank you all for your work every day. Your research, teaching and contributions to our campus and to our state are tremendous. As we navigate these policy changes, our role in educating future leaders and solving some of the most complex challenges facing our state and beyond remains critical. You can always find the latest information on the Federal Transition webpage and for researchers, please view agency-specific guidance for principal investigators. If you have questions, concerns or would like 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