While the Trump administration has sought to punish Northwestern over concerns about antisemitism on campus, the University has been busy trying to quell flames on Capitol Hill.
During the first quarter of 2025, from January through March, NU’s lobbying spending surged to over $600,000. That figure represents the highest quarterly lobbying expenditure by the University in the last decade. This year’s uptick also follows NU’s 2024 lobbying expenditures swelling to more than $1 million, a historic high, according to federal filings.
Many of the issues NU lobbied for in the past quarter mirrored those the Trump administration is focusing on, including an endowment tax, federal research funding and measures combating antisemitism.
The continued rise in spending this year underpins NU’s efforts to alleviate further financial duress as it weathers strong opposition from the Trump administration.
A University spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.
Since March, the Trump administration has frozen $790 million in federal funding, terminated dozens of research grants and issued about 100 stop-work orders at NU.
Similar to last year, NU also enlisted several lobbyists from Harbinger Strategies, many of whom served as advisers to former House Republican leaders, this past quarter. In total, NU ponied up about $150,000 to the lobbyist group.
So far, NU’s 2025 lobbying expenditure is one of the highest among universities who have seen similar funding freezes. In this year’s first quarter, Harvard University and Columbia University both recorded $230,000 and $510,000 in lobbying respectively.
Federal filings also indicated that NU recently lobbied on issues pertaining to college athletics and name, image, likeness rights. Those expenses come at a time when a seismic court decision could upend how collegiate athletics compensate players for their NIL rights.
Currently, a $2.8 billion antitrust case settlement against the NCAA and the Power Five conferences hangs in the balance. If approved, Division I schools would be able to start paying athletes directly for their NIL use starting July 1.
The settlement would require athletic departments to share over $20.5 million in revenue with their players.
The Trump administration reportedly floated the idea of passing an executive order dealing with NIL deals in college.
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— Northwestern’s lobbying spending balloons to more than $1 million in 2024
