For Immediate Release

The National Center for Youth Law (NCYL) vehemently opposes proposed rule changes that would significantly alter the General Services Administration’s (GSA) System for Award Management (SAM) certification requirements that almost all applicants and recipients of federal financial assistance must complete as part of the application process. 

NCYL submitted a formal comment letter that documents how the proposed rule would impose illegal and coercive conditions on federal funding, particularly regarding organizations’ practices around diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), immigration, and compliance with executive branch guidance. When the Trump Administration previously tried to impose nearly identical changes on all entities receiving federal education funding, a federal court vacated the requirements. 

In American Federation of Teachers v. U.S. Department of Education, a federal district court struck down a similar attempt by the Trump Administration to impose broad anti-DEI certification requirements on funding recipients, finding that the actions violated the Administrative Procedure Act and raised constitutional concerns. The federal government has since abandoned its appeal of that decision. Yet this proposed GSA rule is designed to be a clear end-run around that court’s decision, and to impose these unjust anti-DEI interpretations on a wide swath of federal funding applicants and recipients.

“Organizations across the country depend on federal funding to provide essential services to young people and communities,” said Dan Losen, Senior Director for Education with NCYL. “No organization, especially one offering vital resources to children and families, should be forced into illegal and unclear requirements that are designed to chill and undermine activities that promote diversity, equity, and inclusion. We should be creating pathways, not barriers, to support these types of vital activities.”

Other major concerns with the GSA proposal include that it: 

• Exceeds the authority provided under federal law, including the Paperwork Reduction Act;
• Attempts to impose new funding conditions without congressional authorization; and
• Is vague and misrepresents existing civil rights law, which could suppress lawful activities and speech.

These proposed changes would impact hundreds of thousands of organizations nationwide that must register in SAM to receive federal financial assistance. For many nonprofits, schools, and research institutions, federal funding supports programs that are essential to children and youth, including education, legal advocacy, health initiatives, and community-based services. NCYL calls on GSA to withdraw the proposed changes and maintain the existing certification framework, which already requires recipients to comply with the Constitution and applicable federal laws.

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The National Center for Youth Law centers youth through research, community collaboration, impact litigation, and policy advocacy that fundamentally transforms our nation’s approach to education, health, immigration, foster care, and youth justice. Our vision is a world in which every child thrives and has a full and fair opportunity to achieve the future they envision for themselves.