Washington Update  

Updates on Reconciliation Legislation 
On May 22, the House passed its version of the reconciliation bill, the One Beautiful Bill Act. The bill includes many harmful provisions to public research universities, such as cutting Pell Grants in several ways, eliminating Grad PLUS and Subsidized Undergraduate Loans, and creating a highly unusual accountability system using a complex formula based on data that is inconsistent with how public institutions are funded by their states. 

Senate committees have started releasing their components of a reconciliation measure. While the original goal was to get a bill to President Trump’s desk by July 4, the timeline may be pushed back, according to reports. The latest reconciliation development is the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee’s release of its bill late last evening. 

• While APLU continues to review the legislation, some initial takeaways include 
• Fewer reductions to Pell compared to the House version 
• Preservation of Subsidized Loans 
• A very different approach to accountability than the House that holds programs accountable based on earnings data 
• Elimination of Grad PLUS loans with strict caps on loan limits that are problematic 

For additional information on the House measure, view: 

• APLU Summary of Provisions of Most Direct Impact to Public Research Universities 
• APLU Letter Opposing House Bill 

FY25 and FY26 Appropriations Update 
On May 30, the Trump administration released its detailed FY26 Presidents Budget Request (PBR) to Congress. The $1.691 trillion base request includes $1.011 trillion in discretionary defense spending and $601 billion in non-defense discretionary spending. The PBR decreases non-defense discretionary spending by 22.6 percent to its lowest level since 2017. Meanwhile, defense spending would increase by 13 percent.  

Of note, the budget proposes steep cuts to scientific research funding, including a near 57 percent cut to the National Science Foundation (NSF) topline and a 40 percent cut to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) topline. The PBR also seeks to reduce federal student aid funding, proposing a 23 percent cut to the maximum Pell Grant, the elimination of Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grants, and an 80 percent cut to Federal Work Study.  

Upon release of the Skinny Budget Request on May 2, President Mark Becker released a statement, noting “the administration is proposing cuts to higher education and scientific research of an astonishing magnitude that would decimate U.S. innovation, productivity, and national security.” APLU developed an analysis of the PBR which details request levels for APLU priority accounts.  

Go Deeper: In addition to the PBR, the administration submitted a FY25 budget rescissions package to Congress for a vote, with $9.4 billion in proposed cuts to already enacted funding for USAID, National Public Radio, and Public Broadcasting Service. The rescissions package eliminates $2.5 billion of $3.9 billion from USAID Development Assistance. President Becker wrote to key appropriators raising concerns about elimination of USAID funding would mean for vital programs such as the Feed the Future Innovation Labs.  

Trump Administration Actions on Student Visas 
In late May, Secretary of State Marco Rubio reportedly ordered United States embassies and consular sections to pause scheduling interviews for student visa applicants in anticipation of a possible expansion of social media vetting  for all prospective foreign students. Further, Secretary Rubio posted on X, “The U.S. will begin revoking visas of Chinese students, including those with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields.” 

On May 30, APLU joined a higher education community letter to the Department of State communicating the association’s willingness to work with federal officials to address security concerns. The letter also expresses concerns that a visa pause would impede international students already admitted to U.S. institutions from entering the country and would ultimately hinder institutions’ ability to attract talent in the future. APLU is engaged with the State Department on its concerns. 

President Trump Signs Executive Order on ‘Gold Standard Science’  
On May 23, President Trump signed an executive order directing the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) to issue guidance to agencies on how to carry out “Gold Standard Science”. The order defines “gold standard science” as “reproducible, transparent, falsifiable, subject to unbiased peer review, clear about errors and uncertainties, skeptical of assumptions, collaborative, interdisciplinary, accepting of negative results, and free from conflicts of interests.” Agency heads have also been tasked to “reevaluate and, where necessary, revise or rescind scientific integrity policies or procedures, or amendments to such policies or procedures” that were issued during the Biden administration. 

APLU maintains a tracker of President Trump’s Executive Orders of most relevance to institutions of higher education. 

States File Suit on NSF F&A Rate Cap 
On May 28, a group of states filed a lawsuit and motion for a preliminary injunction in the Southern District of New York challenging the National Science Foundation (NSF) directive setting new agency priorities and its en masse termination of projects pursuant to those priorities as well as NSF’s 15% rate cap. The plaintiffs are seeking relief for their institutions and states, which are New York, Hawaii, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Washington, and Wisconsin. 

U.S. Department of Education Announces Senior Institute of Education Sciences Advisor, Additional Appointees  
On May 30, the U.S. Department of Education (ED) announced Dr. Amber Northern as Senior Advisor with a focus on reforming the Institute of Education Sciences (IES). Dr. Northern is on leave from the Thomas Fordham Institute where she recently served as Senior Vice President for Research. She has a Ph.D. in education policy and evaluation from the University of Virginia, and previously served in K-12, community college, and university settings. Dr. Northern stated, “It is such an honor to be asked to examine IES with fresh eyes and consider how it might be more responsive to the students, parents, and educators that it serves.” 

On June 6, ED also announced an additional set of political appointees.  

Senate HELP Committee Confirms Under Secretary of Education Nicholas Kent, Other Education and Labor Nominees 
On May 22, the Senate HELP Committee voted along party lines to advance President Trump’s nominees for education and labor positions, including Nicholas Kent as Under Secretary of Education. The committee also advanced Kevin O’Farrell to serve as Assistant Secretary for Career, Technical, and Adult Education, and Henry Mack III to serve as Assistant Secretary of Labor for the Employment and Training Administration, Department of Labor.