CMU’s Response to Federal F&A Cap for NSF

May 5, 2025

Dear Members of the Carnegie Mellon University Community:

I am writing to share that Carnegie Mellon University has joined in a new lawsuit filed by the Association of American Universities (AAU) against the federal government. This lawsuit, filed in the First District of Massachusetts, challenges the National Science Foundation’s newly announced 15% facilities and administrative (F&A) rate cap on all prospective grants. 

CMU is represented in this lawsuit as an AAU member, and we have also signed on as an individual party plaintiff. Currently, 12 other universities — including MIT, Caltech, Princeton, the University of California, the University of Chicago and the University of Pennsylvania — have signed on as individual plaintiffs in the lawsuit, as have the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities and the American Council on Education.

You may recall that CMU signed on as a named party plaintiff in a separate lawsuit, filed by the AAU in February, to challenge the National Institutes of Health 15% F&A rate cap. This lawsuit was successful, resulting in an injunction that has momentarily blocked the NIH’s F&A rate cut.

Our decision to challenge the federal government more than once in several months is the product of much thoughtful consideration and discussion as well as consultation with the executive committee of CMU’s Board of Trustees. As we have previously stated: A 15% F&A rate cap would cause a sudden and severe shortfall in federal funding for U.S. research universities, effectively crippling some of our nation’s greatest and surest engines of innovation and economic prosperity.  

The NSF announced its proposed F&A rate cap reduction just as the White House released its initial FY26 federal budget, which includes significant cuts to the NIH, NSF and Department of Energy science budgets. It is worth noting that presidential budget requests are rarely enacted as written. The nation’s budget-setting process typically spans months of negotiations and hearings, with Congress bearing ultimate responsibility for enacting and passing the final budget. As the budget process evolves, we will continue to collaborate with AAU and our peers and engage policymakers and our elected officials to amplify the pivotal impact of U.S. research universities and advocate for the importance of federal investment in research and education.

As we continue to navigate this shifting federal landscape, I remain grateful for the invaluable guidance and contributions of CMU’s academic and administrative leaders — especially Vice President for Research Theresa Mayer, Provost and Chief Academic Officer Jim Garrett and Vice President and General Counsel Mary Jo Dively — as well as the many remarkable contributions of our faculty members. I am also deeply appreciative of our Board of Trustees for their ongoing counsel and support.

Carnegie Mellon has maintained a productive and overwhelmingly positive partnership with the federal government and its many federal agencies for 80 years. The NSF, in particular, has long served as one of the nation’s greatest champions of basic science and innovation. I remain hopeful for a resolution that preserves the federal government’s extensive record of partnership with U.S. research universities and empowers us to continue fueling American innovation, enhancing national security and driving economic prosperity.

With warm regards,

Farnam Jahanian
President
Henry L. Hillman President’s Chair