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The public comment period closed this week for a proposed White House-backed rule that would profoundly change how federal agencies design, review, and administer grants and other awards. If approved, the changes would give an administration significantly more control, and formalize many of the Trump administration’s more controversial moves in the last 18 months.
In its proposal, the Office of Management and Budget stated the changes would “improve transparency, accountability, and oversight for use of federal taxpayer dollars,” and prevent the use of federal awards to “promote a ‘woke’ policy agenda that does not reflect the values of the vast majority of the American public.”
For the Department of Energy, which administers billions of dollars in funding for energy deployment, research, and grid modernization, the changes would formalize the unprecedented level of control the White House has exerted over funding decisions and program priorities in the second Trump administration. Since January of 2025, that has included canceling major infrastructure awards, and directing funding away from Democrat-led states and toward favored technologies, including coal power infrastructure and geothermal.
