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Office of Research and Innovation
Research Administration and Compliance

2025 Federal Transition

Last update: Thursday, Jan. 30, 2025
Note: Important updates are highlighted in yellow below.

The presidential administration’s Executive Orders and guidance have impacted federal agencies and sponsors that fund research, instruction and outreach at NC State, including proposal review and award processes. These orders, agency internal communications and related media coverage raise questions about how our programs supported by federal funds will be affected.

This resource is focused on federal sponsored programs. Executive Orders, Stop Work Orders and associated actions have other implications for our campus community. COGR, an association of research universities, affiliated medical centers, and independent research institutes focused on federal policies and regulations, is closely tracking the federal administration transition activity and providing updated information.

Updates

  • The presidential Executive Orders are still in effect. The Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities (APLU) has created an overview of the President’s Executive Orders.
  • The Office of Management and Budget Memorandum (OMB) M-25-13 was rescinded. While you might have seen this memo referenced in agency communications, we cannot infer how the rescinded memo will change the actions the agencies are required to take.

Proposals

  • Submit proposals according to published deadlines. Most proposals are electronically time-stamped, so they will be accepted or deemed late according to electronic submission. It is not clear when or how proposals for various agencies and programs will be reviewed.
  • Review the original electronic copies of funding announcements you are responding to in order to identify any changes to due dates, scope or other requirements. Sign up for automatic alerts where available. Some opportunities have been suspended and others modified to implement Executive Orders.

Awards

  • Contracts, grants and other agreements with federal agencies and federal contractors remain in effect unless formally modified or a Stop Work Order is received. 
  • Deliverables, including progress reports, should be submitted as scheduled. Technical reports submitted through electronic portals are time-stamped. Overdue reports jeopardize future funding to NC State and our collaborators.
  • Agency portals for prior approvals continue to function. Please continue to request modifications in a timely manner via the Project Modification Request (PMR) system. 
  • Continuation awards and prior approvals that require sponsor staff review may be delayed.
  • Compliance requirements and assurances for sponsored programs might change. Please forward any new assurance requests to the Office of Sponsored Programs and Regulatory Compliance Services (SPS@ncsu.edu) and your College Research Office.
  • Researchers should expect limited communication from their federal program and grant management officers during this transition period.
  • Project budgets and burn rates should be closely monitored. Deficits should be avoided. Spending against future funds should be limited as future obligations may be delayed. In extreme cases, expenditures against future funding may not be reimbursed.

Project- and Program-Specific

  • Researchers and Program Directors receiving a directive or guidance directly from their sponsoring federal agency are encouraged to notify the Office of Research and Innovation at researchadministration@ncsu.edu so we can monitor how agencies are responding to these changes and support you in determining appropriate responses. 
  • The use of pre-award project IDs and at-risk spending should be limited to only those projects where progress is at significant risk.
  • As always, please consult your College Research Office for specific proposal and award needs. 

Projects with DEI Supplements, Segments or Activities

  • Under the Executive Order issued on Jan. 20, 2025, federal agencies are instructed to eliminate DEI considerations from their processes. This directive affects current and future Notices of Funding Opportunities and award terms and conditions.
  • Until federal sponsors release specific guidance on existing awards: If a program’s solicitation and/or proposal included the terms diversity, equity and inclusion, all DEI-specific program activities must be stopped until further instruction is received from the federal sponsor. Other project activities should continue.
  • Funds allocated for DEI activities on federal awards should not be re-budgeted, nor used for other purposes.

Stop Work Orders

NC State has received both Stop Work Orders for all project activities on specific awards and orders to cease certain activities related to the Executive Orders (e.g., DEI, Community Benefit Plans).

Project Stop Work Orders

  • For project Stop Work Orders citing a specific Executive Order, the required federal reviews are expected to be completed over the next several weeks. The result for any project could be an instruction to resume work, an award modification, or a termination.
  • For project Stop Work Orders related to OMB Memorandum M-25-13, recent communications indicate some of these might be reversed.

Directives to Cease Certain Types of Activities (DEI, Community Benefits Plans, etc.)

  • The activities described must be discontinued.
  • Reviewing the associated federal funding announcement, proposal and award can help identify related activities.
  • Continue your non-DEI or other project activity (including travel) unless you receive a project Stop Work Order.

FAQs

  • What does a Stop Work Order mean?
    • While a Stop Work Order is in effect, NC State personnel should not be conducting sponsored project activities or incurring new operational costs. Please be sure all project personnel, including subrecipients, are informed.
  • Must I cancel future travel planned/prepaid before the Stop Work Order was received?
    • It’s recommended to postpone project activities scheduled over the next several weeks where financial loss from doing so is minimal. Decisions on later travel will likely be dictated by the funding agency’s disposition of the Stop Work Order.

Media Inquiries

Media inquiries should be forwarded to newstips@ncsu.edu and researchadministration@ncsu.edu and responded to with the following:
Thank you for your email. All inquiries regarding NC State research are directed to newstips@ncsu.edu. Your message has been forwarded.