Urge Congress to Take Action Against Harmful Proposed Changes to Federal Grants

On 29 May 2026, the US Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released a proposed rule titled Regulation for Federal Financial Assistance that transforms how the government handles the management of grants and other forms of financial assistance. Among the many changes in this proposed rule, OMB proposes giving political appointees greater control over the grant selection process, expanding the authority of the government to terminate active grants if they do not align with administration priorities, and placing significant restrictions on the use of federal funds to cover conference attendance and publishing costs. For a more detailed breakdown of what is in this proposed rule, please see our blog post.

If passed in its current form, this rule would create policies that would cause significant harm to the scientific community, research institutions, and professional societies — including the American Astronomical Society (AAS) and its approximately 9,000 members. Congress can take action against these proposed changes by adding language to the annual appropriations (i.e., funding) bills prohibiting the implementation of the regulation.

Please use the form below to send a message to your congressional offices highlighting the multitude of ways in which the proposed rule would harm the US scientific enterprise, encouraging them to take action to prevent such harms. We also strongly recommend directly contacting the science staffers in your congressional offices and visiting your local district offices to discuss this issue, using the resources on our Suggested Advocacy Actions webpage. If you haven’t already, please also submit a comment on the proposed rule, which you can do following the guidelines here.

Please email us at [email protected] if you have any questions before submitting your comment. Please note that any messages with crude or inflammatory language will not be passed on, and please be respectful during any communications with our federal agencies. (Messages should align with the AAS Mission and Vision Statement and the AAS Code of Ethics.)