White House Implements Common Disclosure Forms, Clarifies Talent Program Restriction

The White House issued a memorandum on Feb. 14 directing science agencies to adopt common forms that grant applicants will use to provide their biographical sketches and details on their current and pending sources of research support.

The forms aim to harmonize agencies’ disclosure requirements, which have expanded considerably in recent years to better identify potential risks to research security and integrity. Agencies are permitted to not use the common forms in situations where they need to “collect additional information or to apply more stringent protections to protect R&D that is classified, export-controlled, or otherwise legally protected.”

The memorandum directs agencies to notify the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy within 90 days on whether they plan to deviate from the common forms.

Also on Feb. 14, OSTP issued guidance to agencies on how to implement recent legislative provisions that restrict federal employees and grantees from participating in certain foreign talent recruitment programs.

The guidance includes an official definition of such programs as well as examples of conduct that does not count as a recruitment program, such as participating in international research projects or conferences that involve open and reciprocal exchanges of information. However, it notes that such conduct may still count as a recruitment program if it is funded or organized by an institution flagged by the Department of Defense as presenting research security risks.