Updated: July 2, 2026

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The Trump administration is taking a page out of Project 2025 and proposing a sweeping regulation that would politicize federal funding across virtually all grantmaking agencies and every sector of society. This new proposed rule, which is laid out explicitly in Project 2025, is the most sweeping action yet by the administration to target people and programs that it disfavors, specifically women, people of color, and LGBTQIA+ individuals. If finalized, this regulation would fracture the basic functions of our government and dismantle vital services that sustain our communities. The proposed rule must be withdrawn.

The proposed rule is a key goal of the Project 2025 agenda, which seeks to expand presidential power and impose the White House’s ideological agenda without congressional oversight.

On May 29, 2026, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), led by one of the chief architects of Project 2025, Russell Vought, released a proposed rule giving agency directors – political appointees handpicked by the president – the power to make funding decisions for at least $1.1 trillion in annual funds. This proposal is straight out of the pages of Project 2025, which states that grant recipients should be required to accept conditions that “include the President’s priorities.”

The proposed rule ignores the parameters laid out by Congress and instead gives explicit authority to political appointees to determine who gets funding, the obligations placed on grantees, and the termination of grants. It intentionally demotes the expert opinions of scientists and researchers within agencies and introduces substantial risks of unpredictability, misuse, and corruption within the grantmaking process. The proposed rule is a blatant attempt by the Trump administration to hijack the U.S. federal grants system – through which the government funds critical programs and services across the country – and reshape it according to this president’s vindictive and discriminatory agenda. 

The Trump administration is trying to impose its ideology on every state and community and entrench its policies for future administrations.

The proposed rule seeks to codify the anti-woman, anti-LGBTQIA+, anti-diversity agenda laid out in Project 2025 and adopted by the Trump administration. It seeks to reshape federal grantmaking now and in the future, which could lead to devastating consequences for many communities. For example, the rule could ultimately lead to: 

• Defunding domestic violence programs that seek to document and collect data that provides localities and states with critical information on service trends, prevention programming, and outcomes for victims and their families who are served by such programs, ultimately reducing the level of assistance, advocacy, and intervention available to victims of domestic violence. 

• Defunding child care and early learning programs that seek to eradicate the causes of poverty by encompassing not only education, but also nutrition, health care, social services, and parent vocational training and employment opportunities, cutting off life-changing education and services for thousands of children and families. 

• Defunding workforce initiatives aimed at increasing women’s representation in underrepresented fields, stripping women of opportunities to create networks and other career supports and stymying efforts to meet the growing demand for workers in fields like construction. 

• Defunding school systems that provide critical services, like one-on-one tutoring and speech and occupational therapy, for disabled students, exacerbating existing educational inequities. 

• Defunding maternal and child health initiatives, which support access to prenatal and postpartum care and screening, maternal mortality reduction efforts, community outreach, and the health providers offering this care. 

• Defunding medical services, outreach, and support systems for people living with HIV who do not have sufficient financial resources to access the care they need. 

The vast majority of federal grant funding goes to states, meaning that this proposed rule would also undermine state efforts to address inequality because those efforts often conflict with the administration’s campaign against diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, as well as its efforts to stigmatize transgender people. As a result, states with strong anti-discrimination protections could face the greatest risk.  

This rule must be withdrawn in its entirety.

With this rule, the Trump administration is attempting to upend federal grantmaking. It is shifting decision-making from experts within agencies to political hacks appointed by the president. In a radical departure from how grantmaking has worked for decades, it is usurping Congress’s role and overriding states’ discretion and authority. In doing so, it is furthering Project 2025 and the president’s policy and political agenda, threatening to compromise the quality and reliability of federally funded services in nearly every area.  

 If finalized, this rule would limit or eliminate access to critical services – widening existing disparities for underserved communities, while actively interfering with efforts to reduce those disparities. The loss of such funding would not only undermine the very fabric of our democracy but also threaten vital services that sustain our communities. OMB must withdraw this rule in its entirety, and Congress must protect communities from these harmful proposed changes by including a provision in a spending bill to prevent OMB from finalizing the rule.