The letter, sent by the Council on Governmental Relations (COGR) to Dr. Lawrence A. Tabak, Acting Director of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), highlights concerns with the current limitations of the NIH Modular Grant Application and Award process. COGR acknowledges the positive impact and original intent of the modular grant system, introduced in 1998 to reduce administrative burden and focus attention on scientific merit rather than elaborate budget details. However, the organization points out that the $250,000 direct cost cap has remained unchanged for 24 years, failing to account for inflation and leading to a significant decrease in the proportion of grants utilizing the modular format. This situation has resulted in increased administrative workload for researchers, who now spend a substantial portion of their time on administrative tasks related to federal awards.
In response, COGR recommends two main reforms: raising the modular direct cost cap to $750,000 per year (aligned with federal audit thresholds) or eliminating the cap entirely to broaden access to the modular format; and removing the requirement for detailed budgets at the proposal stage, only mandating such details for selected projects. COGR argues these changes would revitalize the focus on scientific inquiry, substantially reduce administrative burden for researchers and institutions, and improve the efficiency of the grant process without compromising cost control or funding integrity. The letter urges NIH leadership to consider these updates to better support the U.S. biomedical research enterprise.
