BETHESDA, MD – The Biophysical Society condemns the Office of Management and Budgets (OMB) Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on Federal Financial Assistance, released Friday, May 29th. The NPRM is a sweeping overhaul of federal rulemaking and oversight, removing individual oversight from federal agencies to promulgate rules and oversee how regulations are implemented and enforced internally.
The proposal effectively moves all power and control over regulations away from federal agencies with subject matter expertise and centralizes it under OMB and, effectively, under the direct control of the White House. These changes would have a fundamental impact on federal agencies supporting scientific research and put into practice major portions of the 2025 White House Executive Order on Federal Grantmaking Oversight that BPS strenuously objected to; calling out the chilling effect it would have on science.
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The Biophysical Society, founded in 1958, is a professional, scientific society established to lead an innovative global community working at the interface of the physical and life sciences, across all levels of complexity, and to foster the dissemination of that knowledge. The Society promotes growth in this expanding field through its Annual Meeting, publications, and outreach activities. Its 6,000 members are located throughout the world, where they teach and conduct research in colleges, universities, laboratories, government agencies, and industry.