[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 120 (Thursday, July 13, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2703-S2704]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 586. Mr. SCOTT of South Carolina submitted an amendment intended 
to be proposed by him to the bill S. 2226, to authorize appropriations 
for fiscal year 2024 for military activities of the Department of 
Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the 
Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel strengths for

[[Page S2704]]

such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on 
the table; as follows:

       At the appropriate place in subtitle D of title XII, insert 
     the following:

     SEC. ___. REPORT ON VISA VETTING FOR STUDENTS FROM SEVEN SONS 
                   OF NATIONAL DEFENSE UNIVERSITIES AND OTHER 
                   ACADEMIC INSTITUTIONS OF THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC 
                   OF CHINA.

       (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
       (1) The Government of the People's Republic of China is the 
     greatest infringer of intellectual property rights in the 
     world and uses laws and regulations to disadvantage foreign 
     companies.
       (2) The Federal Bureau of Investigation estimates that the 
     annual cost to the United States economy of counterfeit 
     goods, pirated software, and theft of trade secrets is 
     between $225,000,000,000 and $600,000,000,000.
       (3) The Government of the People's Republic of China 
     recruits students, mostly postgraduate students and 
     postdoctoral researchers studying science, technology, 
     engineering, and mathematics, as collectors of intellectual 
     property to benefit academic institutions, businesses, and 
     defense industries in the People's Republic of China.
       (4) The students or graduates of the universities may visit 
     the United States on an exchange program or for postgraduate 
     education and then return to the People's Republic of China 
     to contribute to the military modernization of the country.
       (5) In 2022, four Chinese nationals were indicted by the 
     Department of Justice for participation in an intelligence 
     campaign aimed to convert United States citizens into agents 
     of the People's Republic of China.
       (6) The four Chinese nationals operated through an academic 
     institute at Ocean University of China, one of the academic 
     institutes identified by the Department of Defense in 
     accordance with section 1286(c)(8) of the John S. McCain 
     National Defense Authorization Act of 2019 (Public Law 115-
     232; 10 U.S.C. 2358 note).
       (7) The Seven Sons of National Defense are the 7 top-ranked 
     universities administered by Ministry of Industry and 
     Information Technology of the People's Republic of China.
       (8) The primary purpose of the universities, commonly 
     referred to as ``military academies'', is to support defense 
     research and development and the defense industrial base of 
     the People's Republic of China.
       (9) Approximately 75 percent of the graduates of such 
     universities are recruited by state defense industries of the 
     People's Republic of China.
       (b) Report.--Not more than 180 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in 
     consultation with the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall 
     submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report 
     that includes--
       (1) an evaluation of the screening process, including a 
     review of social media as part of the process, of foreign 
     nationals entering the United States from the People's 
     Republic of China who attend or have attended--
       (A) a Seven Sons of National Defense university; or
       (B) an academic institution of the People's Republic of 
     China identified on the list required by section 1286(c)(8) 
     of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act of 
     2019 (Public Law 115-232; 10 U.S.C. 2358 note);
       (2) an assessment of the current vulnerabilities in the 
     screening process, and recommendations for legal, regulatory, 
     or other changes or steps to address such vulnerabilities; 
     and
       (3) a confirmation of the number of visas approved and the 
     number of visas denied by the Department of State for 
     students from the People's Republic of China in science, 
     technology, engineering, and mathematics fields, including 
     the number of such students who are pursuing an advanced 
     degree or repeating a degree in such fields.
       (c) Appropriate Congressional Committees Defined.--In this 
     section, the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' 
     means--
       (1) the Committee on Foreign Relations, the Committee on 
     Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, and the Committee 
     on the Judiciary of the Senate; and
       (2) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on 
     Homeland Security, and the Committee on the Judiciary of the 
     House of Representatives.
                                 ______