DETROIT, Michigan — Federal courts have ruled that the Trump administration cannot move forward with cutting billions of dollars in public health research funding allocated to universities and research institutions across the country, a decision with major implications for Michigan’s higher education system.
This week, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit upheld a lower court ruling that blocks the administration’s effort to cap indirect cost reimbursement rates for federally funded research at 15 percent. The decision protects more than $200 million in research funding flowing to Michigan institutions, including the University of Michigan, Michigan State University, and Wayne State University.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel, who joined a multistate legal challenge to the policy, said the administration’s attempt to impose the cap was unlawful and threatened lifesaving research. She noted that the funding supports not only scientific discovery but also the infrastructure needed to carry out complex medical and public health studies.
The disputed funding is administered through the Department of Health and Human Services and the National Institutes of Health. Historically, indirect cost rates are negotiated individually with institutions and average about 28 percent. By unilaterally imposing a 15 percent cap, the NIH policy would have effectively reduced research funding nationwide by billions of dollars.
The policy was challenged in federal court by a coalition of 22 state attorneys general, along with major academic organizations. A federal judge in Massachusetts issued a temporary restraining order within hours of the lawsuit, later converting it into a permanent injunction. The Trump administration appealed, but the First Circuit’s ruling leaves the injunction in place, ending the effort to enforce the cap.
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