Rep. Gillen Leads Bipartisan Letter Urging OMB Director Vought to Reconsider Rule that Politicizes Cancer Research Funding

WASHINGTON, DC - Congresswoman Laura Gillen (D-NY-04) and Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA-8) sent a bipartisan letter to Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought, urging him to reconsider the agency's proposed rule to give the President's political appointees control over federal grantmaking. The new rule would allow appointees to unilaterally reject applications or terminate grants, undermining the traditionally independent and merit-based process for awarding federal cancer research funding.

"Federal cancer research grants go through a rigorous, competitive vetting process. New York and Pennsylvania institutions like Stony Brook, Northwell Health, Cold Spring Harbor, Memorial Sloan Kettering, Abramson Cancer Center, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Ellen and Ronald Caplan Cancer Center and the Cancer Center at CHOP compete for these grants based on scientific merit alone, without regard to politics," said the lawmakers.

The lawmakers highlighted that the proposed rule would make it easier for political appointees to cancel or suspend already-awarded grants whenever doing so is deemed "in the interest of" the agency.

"These changes would ignore Congressional intent, unnecessarily inject politics into cancer research funding decisions, increase delivery timelines and project costs, and make it harder for scientists to plan and sustain long-term research," continued the lawmakers. "We urge you to preserve merit-based review of cancer research grants, and at minimum extend the comment deadline so that Congress and the public can fully evaluate and weigh in on the impact of this proposal."

"More than 125,000 New Yorkers, including many right here on Long Island, will be diagnosed with cancer in 2026. According to the American Cancer Society, more than 4.8 million lives have been saved from cancer since 1991, an accomplishment that has been made possible by research discoveries that are transforming the way we prevent, detect and treat cancer. This proposed rule would allow grants to be approved or denied based on non-scientific criteria and risks our nation's potential to achieve breakthroughs that can improve cancer outcomes and save lives. As an ACS CAN volunteer and advocate for cancer patients and their families, I strongly oppose the rule," said Victor LaBozzetta, District 4 Ambassador Constituent Team Lead, American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network.

The OMB assists in the creation of the annual federal budget and evaluates federal rules and regulations, including over federal grant-making.

Rep. Gillen has consistently advocated against cancer research funding cuts, having previously urged for the reversal of proposed federal cuts to the Pediatric Brain Tumor Consortium.

The full letter can be found here with the full text below:

Dear Director Vought:

We write to address our concerns with the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) proposed rule which would impact critical, lifesaving cancer research funding. This proposal would undermine the independent, merit-based process for awarding federal cancer research projects, and we urge thoughtful reconsideration.

Federal cancer research grants go through a rigorous, competitive vetting process. New York and Pennsylvania institutions like Stony Brook, Northwell Health, Cold Spring Harbor, Memorial Sloan Kettering, Abramson Cancer Center, Fox Chase Cancer Center, Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center, Ellen and Ronald Caplan Cancer Center and the Cancer Center at CHOP compete for these grants based on scientific merit alone, without regard to politics. Long-term Federal investment in cancer research has helped drive a 34% reduction in the overall U.S. cancer death rate over the past thirty-five years, resulting in an estimated 4.8 million fewer deaths. New York and Pennsylvania's institutions have played a major role in these efforts, and they rely on federal grants being awarded fairly and on merit, without fear of arbitrary termination.

OMB's proposed rule would potentially undermine this process. Requiring grant programs to align with "administration policies and priorities" and allowing political appointees to unilaterally reject applications would make it easier for agencies to cancel or suspend already awarded grants. These changes would ignore Congressional intent, unnecessarily inject politics into cancer research funding decisions, increase delivery timelines and project costs and make it harder for scientists to plan and sustain long-term research. Above all, this proposal could jeopardize the real progress we have made against this deadly disease.

We urge you to preserve merit-based review of cancer research grants, and at minimum extend the comment deadline so that Congress and the public can fully evaluate and weigh in on the impact of this proposal. Thank you for your attention to this important issue.

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