From cynthia.johnson at ucr.edu Fri Apr 10 18:42:29 2026 From: cynthia.johnson at ucr.edu (Cynthia J. Johnson) Date: Fri, 10 Apr 2026 18:42:29 -0700 Subject: [Research] =?utf-8?q?USDA_General_Terms_and_Conditions=3A_=C2=A0?= =?utf-8?q?Lawsuit_and_Campus_Guidance?= In-Reply-To: References: Message-ID: *~~ Please disseminate this information with those researchers and research administrators in your department who may find it noteworthy ~~* *USDA Releases New Terms and Conditions (dated 12/31/2025)* *Which Is The Subject of Litigation* The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) issued the following USDA Terms and Conditions (effective 12/31/2025) which are applicable to new awards and amendments to existing awards which incorporate these new terms and conditions. Per the USDA website , ?Recipients who receive USDA grants, cooperative agreements, and similar arrangements (including mutual interest agreements), must comply with the applicable USDA General Terms and Conditions?These terms and conditions are in addition to the assurance and certifications made as part of the award or agreement, and any terms, conditions, and restrictions reflected on or in the official award or agreement document.? *Please be advised that the new USDA Terms & Conditions appear problematic and are the subject of a new lawsuit.* UC Legal is working with the California Attorney General?s office to file a declaration in support of the lawsuit filed by California and about twenty (20) other states (*Massachusetts et al. v. USDA et al* Case No. 1:26-cv-11396) challenging the USDA Terms and Conditions. The Plaintiff States filed a Motion for Preliminary Injunction asking the court to preliminarily enjoin USDA from applying and enforcing the challenged conditions to Plaintiff States. For further specifics on this matter, please refer to the attached copy of the lawsuit as well as the attached memo supporting the Motion for Preliminary Injunction. UC Legal hopes to know more about how the Court will rule on that motion in the next few weeks. *** UC INTERIM GUIDANCE *** *USDA Funded Awards - (including agencies within the USDA, such as NIFA and APHIS)* The CA Attorney General?s Office and UC Legal have requested the campuses to hold off on accepting/certifying to the new terms, pending the outcome of the preliminary injunction. Accordingly, RED is temporarily holding off on executing and processing newly received USDA awards (including incoming subawards) and amendments to existing awards/subawards which incorporate the new USDA General Terms and Conditions. UC Legal has also requested that campuses wait to draw down on USDA awarded funds and to hold off on taking other actions that would require certifying to the new USDA Terms and Conditions. *USDA Proposals* RED is aware of a USDA proposal deadline next week. For such proposals, the following Reservation of Rights language should be included with the application: *?The USDA General Terms and Conditions include multiple terms and conditions that are the subject of ongoing litigation in Massachusetts v. USDA, Case No. 26-cv-11396 (D. Mass), including Sections 12.2, 13.5, 13.8 and 13.10 of the USDA General Terms and Conditions for Federal Awards.* *By submitting this application, University of California Riverside does not agree to the disputed terms and reserves the right to review the applicable terms at the time it receives any proposed award in light of any developments in that ongoing litigation.?* *Office Hours: Kuali Sponsored Programs* Please join us for the Kuali Sponsored Programs Office Hours which meets on the *first and third Thursday* of each month from 9 ? 9:30 a.m. via the following *new ZOOM link*: https://ucr.zoom.us/j/91549349837?pwd=7acOMgGLk5bLVMXyHSPMSkHPTo0bhA.1&jst=2 . *We hope to see you there!* *Research List-Serv* Do you know of someone in your department who is not currently registered to receive newsletters (such as this one) from the Research listserv, but would like to? If so, please forward their name and email address to Cynthia Johnson at cwells at ucr.edu. -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: MA v. USDA.pdf Type: application/pdf Size: 814920 bytes Desc: not available URL: -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: 043 Plaintiff's Mem iso Mot for Preliminary Injunction (USDA 3.30.26).pdf Type: application/pdf Size: 523587 bytes Desc: not available URL: