Great news for contractors and grantees working with the Department of Energy: DoE published a Policy Flash on January 27, 2026, officially rescinding the previous policy flash that set a cap of 15% for indirect cost rates for any organization working with DoE!
While the previous policy was technically vacated by a Federal Judge's decision in June of 2025, with the signing of H.R. 6938, the “Commerce, Justice, Science; Energy and Water Development; and Interior and Environment Appropriations Act, 2026," DoE is now forced to go back to accepting indirect cost rates as they had in the previous fiscal year.
This is a huge win for small businesses, the SBIR/STTR program, and the energy research community! Now, let's hope they can get the SBIR/STTR program reauthorized soon, as the next big step to getting back on track...