[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2856 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2856

    To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require additional 
   disclosures relating to gifts and contracts from foreign sources.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 20, 2023

   Mr. Vance (for himself, Mr. Braun, Mr. Hawley, Mr. Budd, and Mr. 
  Tuberville) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
  referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to require additional 
   disclosures relating to gifts and contracts from foreign sources.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Safeguarding American Education From 
Foreign Control Act''.

SEC. 2. DISCLOSURES OF FOREIGN GIFTS.

    (a) Additional Disclosures Required.--Section 117 of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1011f) is amended--
            (1) by amending subsection (a) to read as follows:
    ``(a) Disclosure Report.--
            ``(1) In general.--Whenever any institution is owned or 
        controlled by a foreign source, or receives a gift from or 
        enters into a contract with a foreign source that equals or 
        exceeds the threshold value described in paragraph (2), the 
        institution shall file a disclosure report with the Secretary 
        on January 31 or July 31, whichever is sooner.
            ``(2) Threshold value.--For purposes of this subsection, 
        the threshold value of a gift from or contract with a foreign 
        source is--
                    ``(A) in the case of a foreign source that is not 
                associated with a covered nation, $250,000 or more, 
                considered alone or in combination with all other gifts 
                from or contracts with that foreign source within a 
                calendar year; and
                    ``(B) in the case of a foreign source that is 
                associated with a covered nation, a gift or contract of 
                any value.'';
            (2) by redesignating subsections (d) through (h) as 
        subsections (e) through (i), respectively;
            (3) by inserting after subsection (c) the following:
    ``(d) Additional Submissions; Reporting.--
            ``(1) Transmission of reports, documents, and records.--Not 
        later than 10 days after receiving a disclosure report, 
        document, or other record from an institution under this 
        section, the Secretary shall transmit a copy of such report, 
        document, or record to the Director of the Federal Bureau of 
        Investigation and the Director of National Intelligence.
            ``(2) Report to the secretary of state.--The Secretary of 
        Education shall transmit periodic reports to the Secretary of 
        State regarding disclosures made under this section.'';
            (4) in subsection (g), as redesignated by paragraph (2), by 
        adding at the end the following:
            ``(3) Investigation.--Whenever the Secretary receives 
        credible information about potential noncompliance under this 
        section regarding a covered nation, the Secretary shall 
        initiate an investigation under this section.
            ``(4) Requests by other agencies.--The Director of the 
        Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Director of National 
        Intelligence may request that the Attorney General bring a 
        civil action to compel compliance with this section, as 
        described in paragraph (1).''; and
            (5) in subsection (i), as redesignated by paragraph (2)--
                    (A) by redesignating paragraphs (2) through (5) as 
                paragraphs (3) through (6); and
                    (B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following 
                new paragraph:
            ``(2) the term `covered nation' has the meaning given that 
        term in section 4872(d)(2) of title 10, United States Code;''.
    (b) Transmittal of Records to FBI and DNI.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 90 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Education shall 
        transmit to the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation 
        and the Director of National Intelligence--
                    (A) a copy of any report, document, or other record 
                received by the Department of Education under section 
                117 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
                1011f), regardless of the date on which the record was 
                received or the status of the case to which the record 
                pertains (while the Department of Education shall 
                retain the original); and
                    (B) a copy of the entire record generated by the 
                Department of Education in the course of an 
                investigation into the compliance of an institution 
                with such section (including any past investigation 
                since the enactment of such section), including any 
                email, report, document, or other record (while the 
                Department of Education shall retain the original).
            (2) New investigations.--In the case of a new investigation 
        under section 117 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 
        U.S.C. 1011f) after the date of enactment of this Act, the 
        Secretary of Education shall--
                    (A) notify the Director of the Federal Bureau of 
                Investigation and the Director of National Intelligence 
                when such an investigation is opened;
                    (B) submit the entire record of such investigation 
                (as described in paragraph (1)) not more than 90 days 
                after the completion of such investigation; and
                    (C) retain original records as described in 
                paragraph (1).
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