- The 444-page document outlines a change in the qualifying processes agencies use to make funds available to awardees, marking a shift in review processes, among other things.
- The impact of the rules stated in the NPRM remains unclear; however, many are concerned that the administration will use the executive branch agencies to advance its own political agenda through the grants process.
The bigger picture:
The new rules would instruct agencies to terminate grants that don’t align with the administration's priorities to “improve American lives or advance American interests." Under this proposal, peer reviews for grants would be eliminated, and awards would be judged and determined entirely by government administrators who are not likely to be subject matter experts, giving them full autonomy over the grant portfolios.
Thousands of grants have been cancelled, and billions of dollars in funding are now left in the command of administration officials. This includes the allowance of the governing bodies to cancel awarded funding at any moment. Leaving programs in limbo or scrambling for additional monies to drive their initiatives to completion.
The proposed rules are open for comment through July 13 and scheduled to go into effect October 1, 2026.
