Yale University announced it is preparing for workforce reductions and austerity measures as it braces for roughly $300 million in annual endowment taxes beginning in 2026. Senior university officials signaled hiring freezes, travel cuts and possible layoffs across units if other savings prove insufficient, noting the tax will exceed the school’s annual undergraduate financial‑aid budget. Leaders warned that the new higher‑endowment tax bracket and concurrent federal pressures on research overhead reimbursements will squeeze funding for financial aid, research, and program support. Yale framed cuts as a last resort and said it would spread any downsizing across units, but the announcement underscores how recent federal tax and grant‑policy shifts can produce tangible staffing and program impacts at elite institutions.