The Office of Sponsored Projects (OSP) provides high-quality research administration support and sponsored project compliance expertise throughout the grant life cycle.
Federal Shutdown Guidance
Last updated: October 1, 2025
A federal government shutdown began on October 1, 2025, due to a lapse in funding.
Each federal agency is handling the shutdown differently. The points below summarize guidance from each agency's published contingency plan and are provided for reference only. If you have questions about your federally funded grant, contact your OSP Sponsored Project Officer.
In general, projects should continue unless you receive specific instructions from your federal or pass-through sponsor.
If you are a principal investigator (PI) and receive direct communication from a federal funder, contact your Sponsored Project Officer in the Office of Sponsored Projects.
General Guidance
- Keep your project up and running unless notified otherwise.
- Follow all posted deadlines and requirements for new or renewal proposals to the best of your ability. Deadlines may be revised by federal agencies once the shutdown ends.
- New and continuing awards will be delayed, which may affect employment start dates tied to these awards. Use caution when making employment commitments.
- Grants.gov will remain operational; however, there may be limited staff to help depending on the agency.
Agency-Specific Guidance
Use the following links to jump to updates for the corresponding agency:
- Dept. of Agriculture (USDA)
- Dept. of Commerce (DOC)
- Dept. of Defense (DOD)
- Dept. of Education (ED)
- Dept. of Energy (DOE)
- Dept. of Health and Human Services (HHS)
- Dept. of Homeland Security (DHS)
- Dept. of Justice (DOJ)
- Dept. of Transportation (DOT)
- Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
- National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
- National Science Foundation (NSF)
Department of Agriculture (USDA)
USDA Shutdown Contingency Plan
- USDA will cease operations related to (among other functions) payment processing and contracts and agreements not related to exempted programs.
Department of Commerce (DOC)
- The Department of Commerce will cease operations related to most research activities at the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
Department of Defense (DoD)
- Work may continue under existing contracts and payments for contracts under prior year funds will continue.
- Conditions: no access to government facilities, no active administration by government personnel, no use of government resources in manner that would cause new obligations on government
- New contracts may not be executed nor may increments of funding be placed on incrementally funded contracts.
Department of Education (ED)
- Grantees will continue to be able to draw funds on existing awards, for at least the first week of a shutdown.
- No new grantmaking (except for programs with mandatory or advance funds)
Department of Energy (DOE)
- DOE components will continue to operate until prior year balances are exhausted. Certain activities will be limited.
- Performance under existing contracts and other funding instruments (including grants) will continue.
Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
- HHS payment systems will remain operational for grant payments for excepted programs.
- HHS will provide further guidance to grant community in case of shutdown.
- National Institutes of Health (NIH)
- No grant reviews etc., no new awards, no program management activities
Department of Justice (DOJ)
- Grant administration activities will continue with reduced staffing levels as long as sufficient carryover funds remain.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
- No new obligations for grants, cooperative agreements, or contracts.
- Work under grants, cooperative agreements, and contracts can continue.
- Current grantees can make drawdowns using the Automated Standard Application Payment (ASAP) system but drawdowns requiring EPA staff interaction may be limited.
National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)
NASA Shutdown Contingency Plan
- Work under contracts, grants, etc. for which funds were obligate prior to the lapse in appropriations can continue, provided such work does not require NASA facilities, oversight, or other input from NASA staff.
- New contracts, grants, etc. will not be made except in limited circumstances.
National Science Foundation (NSF)
- Work under existing grants may continue during their current performance periods.
- Award Cash Management Service (ACM$) will be available to process valid payments from prior obligations.
- No new grants, continuing grant increments, cooperative agreements, or contracts will be awarded.
- No new funding opportunities will be issued.
- Proposal preparations and submission systems will remain available for use, but proposals will not be processed until normal operations resume.
Congratulations FY25 Grant Awardees!
The Office of Sponsored Projects would like to congratulate the faculty and staff who were awarded sponsored project funding in FY25 from local, state, and federal agencies.
What Is A Sponsored Project?
Need help figuring out whether or not your project is a Sponsored Project? If your answer to both questions below is “Yes,” SLCC Policy requires your proposal to be developed, submitted, and managed under the direction of the Office of Sponsored Projects.
YES or NO
- Is your contract, agreement, grant, designation or waiver supported by a government or public entity?
YES or NO
- Do at least two of the conditions below apply to your project?
- the project requires adherence to government grant regulations and imposes terms of legal accountability, i.e., indemnification;
- the project requires formal institutional endorsement;
- the project obligates the PI or institution to a line of developmental or scholarly inquiry that follows a plan or seeks to meet stated goals;
- the project establishes an understanding of how the funds will be used or includes a line-item budget that identifies expenses by activity or period;
- the project requires fiscal accountability as evidenced by the submission of financial reports to the sponsor or the return of unexpended funds at the end of the project period;
- the project requires the PI to report project results or convey rights to tangible or intangible properties resulting from the project; or
- the project recovers indirect costs.