A federal judge on Aug. 1 declined a request from 16 states to block the National Science Foundation (NSF) from terminating research funding awarded to universities for diversity-related projects.
The ruling stems from a lawsuit filed by 16 Democratic-led states seeking a preliminary injunction to block the implementation of NSF’s priority directive that halted funding for projects aimed at increasing minority participation in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields.
In a 78-page opinion, U.S. District Judge John Cronan declined to issue the injunction, noting that the case involves monetary claims and therefore falls within the jurisdiction of the Court of Federal Claims….