Title 42 — The Public Health and WelfareRelease 119-73not60

§19151 Federal Research Agency Policies for Caregivers

Title 42 › Chapter 163— RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT, COMPETITION, AND INNOVATION › Subchapter V— BROADENING PARTICIPATION IN SCIENCE › Part A— STEM Opportunities › § 19151

Last updated Apr 5, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Director must, no later than 12 months after August 9, 2022, give guidance to federal research agencies so they create rules that cover all research awards from the agency and the lead researchers and their trainees who have caregiving duties, such as caring for a newborn or newly adopted child or an immediate family member with a disability or serious health condition. These rules should, when possible, let award start dates be flexible, allow no-cost extensions, provide extra funding supplements to keep research going, and offer other reasonable accommodations. The Director must push for similar rules across agencies. Agencies must make and use these policies and share them in easy-to-find formats with current and possible award recipients. Agencies must also consider collecting user data, including demographic details (sex, location, and socioeconomic markers like job, education, parental education, and income) at colleges and federal labs, and consider sending annual reports of that data to the Director in the form the Director requires.

Full Legal Text

Title 42, §19151

The Public Health and Welfare — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Not later than 12 months after August 9, 2022, the Director, in consultation with the heads of relevant agencies, shall provide guidance to each Federal research agency to establish policies that—

(1)apply to all—

(A)research awards granted by such agency; and

(B)principal investigators of such research and their trainees, including postdoctoral researchers and graduate students, who have caregiving responsibilities, including care for a newborn or newly adopted child and care for an immediate family member who has a disability or a serious health condition; and

(2)provide, to the extent feasible—

(A)flexibility in timing for the initiation of approved research awards granted by such agency;

(B)no-cost extensions of such research awards;

(C)award supplements, as appropriate, to research awards to sustain research activities conducted under such awards; and

(D)any other appropriate accommodations at the discretion of the director of each such agency.

(b)In providing guidance under subsection (a), the Director shall encourage uniformity, to the extent practicable, and consistency in the policies established pursuant to such guidance across all Federal research agencies.

(c)Consistent, to the extent practicable, with the guidance under subsection (a), Federal research agencies shall—

(1)maintain or develop and implement policies for individuals described in paragraph (1)(B) of such subsection; and

(2)broadly disseminate in easily accessible formats such policies to current and potential award recipients.

(d)Federal research agencies shall consider—

(1)collecting data, including demographic data that can be disaggregated by sex, geographic location, and socioeconomic indicators, which may include employment status, occupation, educational attainment, parental education, and income, on the usage of the policies under subsection (c), at both institutions of higher education and Federal laboratories; and

(2)reporting such data on an annual basis to the Director in such form as required by the Director.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

42 U.S.C. § 19151

Title 42 — The Public Health and Welfare

Last Updated

Apr 5, 2026

Release point: 119-73not60