Should U.S. colleges and universities be required to disclose financial contributions and contracts from foreign sources?
The DETERRENT Act (H.R. 1048) aims aims to strengthen the United States' ability to deter foreign adversaries, particularly China, from engaging in hostile actions against U.S. interests. Specifically, the bill amends the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), giving the president the authority to impose targeted sanctions on individuals, entities, or foreign governments that engage in cyberattacks, economic coercion, or actions that undermine U.S. interests.
The bill also makes adjustments to the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), requiring more detailed reporting from foreign entities operating in the U.S. with ties to hostile nations. The authority to designate which countries are considered "hostile" typically resides with the Executive Branch, particularly the President and relevant agencies such as the Department of State, Department of Defense, and Department of the Treasury.
It requires colleges and universities to report gifts or contracts worth $50,000 or more from foreign sources and provide public access to these records. The bill also bans institutions from contracting with foreign adversaries unless granted a special waiver and mandates reporting of faculty and staff receiving significant foreign funding. Additionally, it establishes a database to track institutions' investments in foreign entities.
Sponsor: Rep. Michael Baumgartner (Republican, Washington, District 5)
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Opponents say
• "If institutions are found to not be compliant with the legislation’s foreign gift reporting requirements, they could then be fined, or could lose their Title IV eligibility. “The very first package of bills passed out of this Committee sends a strong message: we will not tolerate any attempt by America’s adversaries to subvert our education system or exploit our students,” Walberg said. “Authoritarian regimes around the world, like the Chinese Communist Party, are trying to use lucrative financial ties to influence our students, steal research, and censor free speech.” NASFAA and other higher education organizations have previously opposed the DETERRENT Act because of concerns over the privacy of research faculty and staff, the potential hampering of productive international collaborations, and it being unclear as to why endowments at certain private institutions would be specifically called out as a national security concern, among other concerns. During his opening remarks in Wednesday’s markup, Rep. Bobby Scott (D-Va.), ranking member of the House Education & Workforce Committee, called the DETERRENT Act an “arbitrary” and “potentially discriminatory approach targeting certain countries and their researchers.” “By focusing on nationality rather than security risks, this bill undermines the international collaborations that have historically advanced fields like health and technology,” Scott said in his opening remarks. “As I’ve said before, we can address these concerns without undermining the trust between our institutions and our global partners." Source: NASFAA
• "We understand that Congress and policymakers are concerned with research security, as well as foreign malign influence, at our institutions. However, the DETERRENT Act is the wrong action to take to address these issues and we urge you to vote against the legislation. While we understand the concern regarding foreign funding to U.S. institutions of higher education is bipartisan, we believe the DETERRENT Act is duplicative of existing interagency efforts, unnecessary, and puts in place a problematic expansion of the data collection by the U.S. Department of Education that will broadly curtail important needed international research collaboration and academic and cultural exchanges." Source: Letter by American Council for Education, co-signed by 18 other organizations.
Proponents say
• "Foreign powers, particularly the Chinese Communist Party, have quietly infiltrated our colleges and universities, using their financial influence to open the floodgates to endless cash that comes with hidden agendas. The DETERRENT Act is designed to expose these foreign influences, hold universities accountable, and ensure clarity in a system that has allowed bad actors to manipulate well-meaning institutions. We need to ensure that Chinese influences and other foreign powers are not allowed to compromise the integrity of American educational institutions for their own gain." Source: Rep. Micheal Baumgartner (Republican, Washington, District 5), sponsor of this bill
• "The current system has allowed foreign adversaries to infiltrate our colleges and universities. By establishing footholds in American schools, bad actors gain access to valuable research and intellectual property that can be utilized to bolster their own military. Sadly, the Biden-Harris administration failed to open a single investigation into this dangerous threat. So Congress is taking action because it is imperative that we hold these universities—which have turned a blind eye for too long— accountable and bring to light malignant foreign entities lurking in our schools." Source: Chairman Tim Walberg (Republican, Michigan, District 5), co-sponsor of this bill
