Bills on Foreign Gift Reporting Introduced

Members of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) introduced two separate bills to address foreign gifts to institutions of higher education.

Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) introduced the DETERRENT Act, a companion bill to the one passed by the House last month. The act would reform the provisions of Section 117 of the Higher Education Act related to institutional reporting on foreign gifts. 

The bill would lower the reporting threshold from $250,000 to $50,000 for gifts to or contracts with institutions of higher education, and to $0 for gifts or contracts from countries of concern, which are China, Iran, North Korea, and Russia. The bill would also require institutions to maintain a searchable database of gifts to or contracts with faculty and review their portfolios for investments with companies from the countries of concern.

Senator Jim Banks (R-IN) introduced the Safeguarding American Education From Foreign Control Act, which maintains the $250,000 threshold for reporting foreign gifts to institutions but lowers the threshold to $0 for gifts from China, Iran, North Korea, and Russia. The bill would require reporting to be shared with the FBI, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Department of State.

The Section 117 Foreign Gift Reporting language has been part of the Higher Education Act for decades. Tillis said his intent is for the bill to address “adversarial countries [that] are using America’s college campuses to undermine our nation’s interests. The DETERRENT Act is a crucial step towards transparency and protecting American education and students from malicious foreign influence.”

In introducing his bill, Banks said “Americans deserve to know if universities are accepting money from our enemies like China, Iran, Russia, and North Korea. This bill delivers that transparency and stops hostile nations from hiding their influence on our campuses.”

The HELP Committee has discussed foreign influence on college campuses in recent hearings. Chairman Bill Cassidy (R-LA) is expected to hold committee consideration of the bills in the near future.

For more information, please contact:
Stephanie Giesecke