The U.S. science community finished registering its overwhelming opposition to a sweeping proposal by President Donald Trump’s administration to impose tighter political control over how the federal government manages trillions of dollars in federal grants and contracts, including those spent on research.

Now, scientists and others are waiting to see how the administration responds to the outpouring of nearly 497,000 comments on the 412-page proposal that were submitted by the 13 July, 2026 deadline. The administration has said it wants to finalize the new guidelines by 1 October.

Many research advocates reacted with alarm on 29 May, 2026 when the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released the proposal, which among other things would allow political appointees to review agency decisions on what science to fund, arbitrarily terminate grants, and prohibit research collaborations with China and many other countries. Science, higher education, and patient advocacy organizations quickly called on their members and allies to submit comments—and tens of thousands appear to have responded.
 

Source https://www.science.org/content/article/u-s-researchers-outraged-proposed-changes-federal-grants

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