Federal research funding flows to colleges historically left behind
H.R. 10424 — Equity in Research Act · Filed by Troy Carter (D-LA) · 8 cosponsors · Introduced Sep 16, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill creates a National Science Foundation grant program that awards $1–5 million per institution to historically Black colleges, Hispanic-serving institutions, tribal colleges, and other minority-serving colleges and universities to upgrade research facilities, equipment, and staffing. The program is authorized at $50 million annually starting in fiscal 2027.
Why we flagged it
The bill is a straightforward federal grant program designed to address documented disparities in research infrastructure funding at minority-serving institutions. It names eligible recipients explicitly and sets clear grant amounts and authorized appropriations.
What the text implies
- Grant eligibility is broad (10 categories of minority-serving institutions) and overlapping—a single institution may qualify under multiple categories, but the bill does not specify whether an institution receives one grant or multiple grants, creating potential ambiguity in implementation.
- The $50M annual authorization is modest relative to total NSF budget (~$8.8B) and the number of eligible institutions (thousands), suggesting individual grants will be competitive and many eligible institutions may not receive funding in any given year.
- The bill does not specify whether grants are one-time or renewable, or whether institutions must demonstrate research outcomes to retain funding, leaving sustainability and accountability mechanisms undefined.
Section numbers refer to the bill text the analysis read — linked under Primary records below.
Who it affects
The bill directs federal research funding to institutions historically underfunded in research infrastructure, expanding research capacity at colleges serving underrepresented populations. This strengthens educational opportunity, research output, and economic development in communities that have been systematically excluded from federal research investment.
Who stands to gain
- Historically Black Colleges and Universities
- Hispanic-serving institutions
- Tribal colleges
- Native Hawaiian-serving institutions
- Predominantly Black institutions
- Native American-serving, nontribal institutions
- Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-serving institutions
- Minority-serving institutions
Named in the bill
National Science Foundation, Director of the National Science Foundation, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic-serving institutions, Tribal colleges, Native Hawaiian-serving institutions, Predominantly Black institutions, 1890 Land Grant Universities, 1994 Land Grant institutions
Where it stands
8 cosponsors: 8 Democrats.
- Sep 16, 2026 — Introduced · Congress.gov: “Introduced in House”
- Sep 16, 2026 — Referred to House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology · Congress.gov: “Referred to the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology”
Dates and quoted wording are Congress.gov's action record; the timeline shows status changes, not every procedural step.
How this was measured
Analysis — Quorum's AI read the bill text published by Congress.gov (2,169 characters) on Sep 23, 2026. Section numbers in the findings refer to that text, linked below; transparency and hidden-provision scores are compared against the median of 14,707 analysed bills.
Status and sponsors — Congress.gov's bill record — actions, committee referrals and cosponsors — loaded nightly. The timeline shows status changes, not every procedural action.
As of — page rendered 2026-09-23.
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