UAB leadership continues to work diligently with government relations professionals and meet regularly to monitor, assess and address rapidly evolving developments related to the change in federal administration and recent executive orders and guidance.

This page is intended to gather related information, guidance and resources. At this time, while we continue to monitor and assess developments, research should continue as planned unless a specific stop-work order is received.

Questions

Researchers with specific operational questions about their proposals, projects or funding because of the executive orders or communications from federal agencies should reach out to the appropriate UAB officials:

Award Activity and Grant Accounting Processes: Any PI/researcher/administrator who receives notice of a stop-work order, award termination, site visit, audit, program review, or other official administrative correspondence related to an award from a funding agency/sponsor (both federal and non-federal), as well as any request that is out of the ordinary, should:

• Notify the usual, local chain of command (e.g., chair/dean/fiscal officer), as well as central:
  • Grants Accounting (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)
  • Office of Sponsored Programs (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)
  • VPR-Research Support (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.)

This will ensure all appropriate parties are notified in a timely manner, including our new, centrally monitored research support account (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) established to collect all notifications and actions received by the UAB research community from agencies and other sponsors (both federal and non-federal) as they relate to ongoing changes in the research landscape. We will review the notifications/actions shared by the research community and report on the collective activity to school and university level leadership to enhance awareness and aid in the development of central guidance and direction.

Preparing Budgets for Research Proposals: For questions about preparing budgets for research proposals, reach out to the Office of Sponsored Programs (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.). At this time, indirect costs should be calculated and proposed based on UAB’s current federally negotiated rate agreement.

Expenditures on Existing Awards: For questions about expenditures on existing awards, reach out to the Office of Grants and Contracts Accounting (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).

Hiring, Travel, Other Operating Expenditures: Unless specific alternative guidance has been provided, hiring, travel and other operating expenditures may proceed as normal through appropriate approval channels.

Research Award Assessment: At this time, PIs and award managers are being asked to review executive orders and use this online form if they think their research award may be affected so they can receive appropriate guidance.

Communications

Communications are available for your reference, e.g., Feb. 10 Email to Faculty and Staff (Watts, Woodruff-Borden, Brown), Feb. 17 Reporter/eReporter Article, which supplemented targeted communications and updates in the Research Matters newsletter. Please continue to look to official UAB communications — including eReporter and Research Matters — for updates.

Political Activity

UAB government relations professionals and leaders represent UAB and the University of Alabama System’s missions and interests, and they are actively engaged on this matter.

Learn about UAB Employee Personal Political Activity, Free Speech, Civil Discourse and UAB's Institutional Neutrality