Appeals court agrees that Congress blocked cuts to research costs

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit has ruled that the Trump administration's attempt to impose a flat reimbursement rate for research costs at universities was unlawful. The decision upholds a previous ruling that the administration's actions were a violation of Congress's authority over federal spending. The case centered around the Trump administration's effort to cap reimbursements for indirect costs associated with federally funded research at universities, known as the "Uniform Guidance" policy. This would have significantly reduced the amount of funding universities received for their research activities. The appeals court agreed with the lower court's finding that Congress had explicitly prohibited the administration from making such changes to research cost reimbursements. The ruling affirms the principle that the executive branch cannot unilaterally override funding decisions made by Congress. This decision is seen as a victory for universities, who argued that the proposed cuts would have undermined their ability to conduct critical research. The ruling preserves the existing system of research cost reimbursements, which is an important source of funding for many academic institutions.