COGR, NACUBO, and 7 Other Organizations File Amicus Brief Supporting Community Appeal of Indirect Cost Cap

This document is an amicus curiae brief filed in the First Circuit Court by COGR, the National Association of College and University Business Officers, and 7 other higher education associations in support of university plaintiffs challenging the U.S. Department of Energy’s policy imposing a uniform 15% cap on indirect cost rates for federally funded research at academic institutions. The brief argues that the DOE’s new rate cap disregards a longstanding, individualized, and congressionally mandated framework established over decades to ensure universities are fairly reimbursed for the indirect costs essential to world-class research, including specialized facilities and administrative support. The amici contend that the rate cap will irreparably harm the research enterprise, undermine national scientific and economic leadership, and cannot be remedied by monetary damages, urging the Court to uphold the district court’s injunction against the DOE’s action.