Harvard Spends $220,000 on Federal Lobbying in First Quarter of 2026

Harvard spent $220,000 on federal lobbying between January and March, maintaining elevated advocacy spending as the University continues to navigate sustained financial and regulatory pressure, according to disclosures filed last Monday.

The first-quarter total is nearly identical to the $230,000 Harvard spent during the same period in 2025, which marked the University’s highest quarterly lobbying expenditures since 2008. Harvard continued to spend record numbers in 2025, closing out the year spending nearly $1 million total on federal lobbying — its highest annual total in more than two decades.

The Monday filings show Harvard continued to pay $90,000 to Ballard Partners, a prominent lobbying firm with close ties to United States President Donald Trump, while retaining its in-house federal relations team.

The University’s lobbying spanned a wide set of policy areas, with a continued emphasis on federal research funding and security. Harvard cited involvement in legislation including the SAFE Research Act and BIOSECURE Act, as well as broader issues such as research transparency, foreign funding disclosures, and federal grantmaking processes.

Higher education groups, including the Association of American Universities, have criticized the SAFE Research Act, arguing it could disrupt collaboration between U.S. and international researchers.

The focus on lobbying reflects ongoing uncertainty in Harvard’s federal funding landscape. Last month, the Department of Justice sued the University, alleging violations of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act and seeking to recover federal funds. For the past year, the Trump administration has also repeatedly tried to halt Harvard’s funding, and appealed a decision ruling those cuts unconstitutional earlier this month.

Beyond research policy, Harvard’s first-quarter lobbying also targeted higher education affordability and student aid. The disclosures list several bills, including the College Financial Clarity Act and the Student Financial Clarity Act, alongside broader efforts related to FAFSA, loan repayment programs, Pell Grant funding, and college cost transparency.

Immigration policy remained another major focus. Harvard lobbied for a “timely and predictable” process for student and scholar visas, as well as policies allowing international students to study, conduct research, and pursue pathways to permanent residency in the U.S.

Those efforts come after a year of heightened scrutiny of Harvard’s international students, including multiple federal attempts to restrict their enrollment. Both efforts were blocked by a federal judge and appealed by the Trump administration.

The University also advocated on tax policy, including issues affecting college endowments and the taxation of scholarships and fellowships. In July 2025, the federal government raised the tax rate on the largest university endowments to eight percent — a change expected to cost Harvard roughly $200 million beginning in fiscal year 2027.

Harvard also lobbied for defense and health-related research funding, including support for federal science agencies and national security-related science and technology initiatives.

—Staff writer Megan L. Blonigen can be reached at [email protected] and on Signal at megblon.50. Follow her on X at @MeganBlonigen.

—Staff writer Graham W. Lee can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on X @grahamwonlee.