APA Services recently joined 164 national organizations in urging the House and Senate Appropriations leaders to adopt the Joint Associations Group on Indirect Costs (jag) recommendations, which strengthen transparency and accountability in federally funded research. Jag is led by Kelvin Droegemeier, PhD, the former director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) during the first Trump administration. Its members include national organizationsopens in new window representing America’s academic, medical, and independent research institutions, together with other leading experts, who have united to drive a more efficient and transparent model for funding indirect costs on federal research grants.
In the letter, organizations expressed appreciation for the supportive language for the jag effort (PDF, 100KB)opens in new window included by appropriators in several fiscal year (FY) 2026 appropriations bills and the accompanying reports. They urged the appropriations committees to retain and strengthen it in the final spending bills—affirming support for jag’s work and prohibiting the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) from imposing arbitrary caps on costs essential to high-quality scientific research. The letter clarifies that expenses commonly labeled “indirect costs,” “facilities and administrative,” or “F&A” are indispensable to conducting research and inseparable from research support itself. We believe jag’s recommendations would improve transparency and accountability in federally funded research while preserving the essential support that underpins American science.
Jag’s proposed Financial Accountability in Research (fair) model introduces a new framework for funding essential research costs. Specifically, the letter’s signatories ask Congress to support jag’s efforts by:
- Including appropriations bill language supporting the work of the jag and the development and implementation of the fair model by the executive branch.
- Blocking any federal agency or OMB action to cap or otherwise change existing negotiated F&A rates until they have worked with the stakeholder community to develop a clear plan for implementation of a new system based on the fair model framework.
- Ensuring at least a 2-year transition period for agencies and institutions to make the necessary changes to an alternative model.
- Preserving continued support for F&A expenses at existing levels until the new model is fully implemented.
The organizations also urged Congress “to ensure that the legislative process affords these protections to ensure that the nation’s research enterprise continues to thrive.”
APA Services will continue partnering with the scientific community to advance a framework that supports essential research costs.
For more information, contact Angela L. Sharpe.