On May 29, 2026, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) proposed an extensive rule that addressed federal financial assistance. Among other things, the rule proposed a review process that would require award recipients to “commit to complying with administration policies, procedures, and guidance respecting Gold Standard Science.”
The rule also proposed to prohibit awards “to fund, promote, encourage, subsidize, or facilitate: ‘Diversity, equity, and inclusion’ (DEI) or ‘diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility’ (DEIA) policies, principles, or practices, that violate any applicable Federal anti-discrimination laws.”
The proposed rule explained that DOJ’s July 2025 Guidance for Recipients of Federal Funding Regarding Unlawful Discrimination “provides illustrative examples of practices that may violate underlying anti-discrimination statutes.”
OMB’s proposal would also require agencies to “ensure that awards are administered in a manner that does not promote or support theories of disparate-impact liability, including by not issuing terms, conditions, or guidance that would advance theories of disparate-impact liability.” The proposed rule provided a definition of disparate-impact liability consistent with Executive Order 14281, “Restoring Equality of Opportunity and Meritocracy,” which ordered the repeal or amendment of all disparate-impact liability guidance or rules.
Finally, the rule would strengthen agencies’ authority to terminate or suspend awards that the agency determines are not “in the interest of” the agency or that do not “effectuate program goals, Federal agency priorities, or the national interest as they exist at the time of the termination.”