The February 2013 Meeting Report and Update from the Council on Governmental Relations (COGR) provides an extensive review of key federal policy developments impacting research institutions, including federal budgeting challenges from sequestration, updates to grant regulations, and major issues affecting costing, contracts, intellectual property, and compliance. The report details uncertainty surrounding federal budget sequestration and its implications for agency funding, highlights the anticipated release of the Office of Management and Budget’s (OMB) Uniform Guidance consolidating administrative and cost principles for federal awards, and outlines COGR’s strategy for responding to these proposed changes, emphasizing the need for coordinated institutional feedback. Additional costing topics addressed include NIH salary limitations, issues with the Treasury Offset Program and VA delinquencies, ongoing audits, and new studies on indirect costs by the Government Accountability Office (GAO). The report also notes developments in core facility costing, ARRA spending extensions, and administrative burdens tied to new and proposed regulations.
In contracts and intellectual property, the document reviews legislative activity such as the reintroduction of the Startup Act, COGR’s formal responses to HHS acquisition regulations, and critical analysis of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office’s (PTO) rule implementations, especially concerning grace period nuances under the America Invents Act (AIA) and clarifications surrounding micro-entity status for patent applicants. The report also discusses ongoing federal initiatives to harmonize patent laws internationally, invites input on the establishment of a U.S. patent small claims court, and highlights the mixed views within the university patent community. For research compliance and administration, significant focus is given to new NSF proposal compliance checks, a proposed OSTP policy expanding oversight of dual use research, the potential regulatory inclusion of rats, mice, and birds under the Animal Welfare Act, and federal directives aimed at increasing public access to results and data from federally funded research. Throughout, COGR emphasizes the importance of community input, careful review of evolving policies, and the potential administrative and financial impacts on research institutions.
