Trump Wants UCLA to Pay $1B to Restore Its Funding

The Trump administration is demanding that the University of California pay more than $1 billion to settle federal charges of antisemitism in exchange for restoring more than half a billion dollars in frozen grant funding to UCLA, sources said Friday.

A proposal from the federal government sent to UC Friday said the university system should pay the billion-dollar fine in installments and contribute $172 million to a fund to pay Jewish students and other individuals affected by alleged violations of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. The statute covers illegal discrimination related to race, color, religion, sex, national origin or shared ancestry, including Jewish and Israeli identity.

Two UC senior officials, speaking on background because they were not authorized to publicly comment on negotiations, confirmed the proposal to The Times. A White House official that spoke on background also confirmed the financial figures.

UC, which is grappling with how to restore $584 million in frozen medical and science grant funds to UCLA, has not accepted the proposal, sources said. If it was accepted, it would the largest settlement between the university and the Trump administration.