II 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 2593 

To amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to improve Federal oversight 

of foreign funding in education. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

AUGUST 3, 2021 

Mr. RUBIO (for himself and Mr. CRAMER) 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 improve 

Federal oversight of foreign funding in education. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Greater Insight into 

5 Foreign Transactions in Higher Education Act of 2021’’ 

6 or the ‘‘GIFTs in Higher Education Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. FEDERAL OVERSIGHT OF FOREIGN FUNDING IN 

8 EDUCATION. 

9 Section 117 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

10 U.S.C. 1011f) is amended— 


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1 (1) in subsection (a), by inserting ‘‘, including 

2 a member of the faculty, professional staff, or other 

3 staff engaged in research and development,’’ after 

4 ‘‘Whenever any institution’’; 

5 (2) by redesignating subsections (b) through 

6 (g), and subsection (h), as subsections (c) through 

7 (h), and subsection (k), respectively; 

8 (3) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol9 lowing: 

10 ‘‘(b) DISCLOSURES OF GIFTS AND CONTRACTS FROM

11 DESIGNATED FOREIGN ADVERSARY SOURCES.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding subsection 

13 (a), whenever any institution, including a member of 

14 the faculty, professional staff, or other staff engaged 

15 in research and development, receives a gift from or 

16 enters into a contract with a designated foreign ad17 versary source, the value of which is $50,000 or 

18 more, considered alone or in combination with all 

19 other gifts from or contracts with that designated 

20 foreign adversary source within a calendar year, the 

21 institution shall file a disclosure report with the Sec22 retary not later than 30 days after the date of the 

23 receipt of the gift or entry into the contract. 

24 ‘‘(2) LIST OF DESIGNATED FOREIGN ADVER25 SARY SOURCES.—In consultation with Congress, the 


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1 Secretary of State may add countries to the list of 

2 adversarial foreign governments in subsection (k) 

3 but may not remove countries from that list.’’; 

4 (4) in subsection (d) (as redesignated), by strik5 ing ‘‘subsection (b)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (c)’’; 

6 (5) in subsection (e) (as redesignated), by strik7 ing ‘‘subsection (a)’’ each place it appears and in8 serting ‘‘subsection (a) or (b)’’; 

9 (6) in subsection (k) (as redesignated)— 

10 (A) by redesignating paragraph (1) and 

11 paragraphs (2) through (5) as paragraph 2 and 

12 paragraphs (4) through (7), respectively; 

13 (B) by inserting before paragraph (2) (as 

14 redesignated) the following: 

15 ‘‘(1) the term ‘adversarial foreign government’ 

16 means— 

17 ‘‘(A) the People’s Republic of China; 

18 ‘‘(B) the Russian Federation; 

19 ‘‘(C) the Democratic People’s Republic of 

20 Korea; 

21 ‘‘(D) the Islamic Republic of Iran; 

22 ‘‘(E) the Republic of Cuba; 

23 ‘‘(F) the Syrian Arab Republic; 

24 ‘‘(G) the regime of Nicola ́s Maduro in Ven25 ezuela; and 


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1 ‘‘(H) the government of any other country 

2 designated as an adversarial foreign govern3 ment for purposes of this section by the Sec4 retary of State, in accordance with subsection 

5 (b)(2);’’; and 

6 (C) by inserting after paragraph (2) (as 

7 redesignated) the following: 

8 ‘‘(3) the term ‘designated foreign adversary 

9 source’ means— 

10 ‘‘(A) an adversarial foreign government, 

11 including an agency of an adversarial foreign 

12 government; 

13 ‘‘(B) a legal entity, governmental or other14 wise, organized solely under the laws of a coun15 try described in paragraph (1); 

16 ‘‘(C) an individual who is a citizen or na17 tional of such a country; and 

18 ‘‘(D) an agent, including a subsidiary or 

19 affiliate of a legal entity of an adversarial for20 eign government, acting on behalf of an adver21 sarial foreign government;’’; and 

22 (7) by inserting after subsection (h) (as redesig23 nated) the following: 

24 ‘‘(i) PUBLICATION OF FOREIGN GIFT DISCLO25 SURES.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) DISCLOSURE OF GIFTS OR CONTRACTS

2 FROM FOREIGN SOURCES.—Not later than 30 days 

3 after the deadline for submission of a disclosure re4 port under subsection (a), the Secretary shall make 

5 the contents of the disclosure report available online. 

6 ‘‘(2) DISCLOSURE OF GIFTS OR CONTRACTS

7 FROM DESIGNATED FOREIGN ADVERSARY

8 SOURCES.—Not later than 30 days after receipt of 

9 a disclosure report submitted under subsection (b), 

10 the Secretary shall make the contents of the disclo11 sure report available online. 

12 ‘‘(j) AGENCY COORDINATION.—The Secretary shall 

13 coordinate with other Federal agencies, as appropriate, to 

14 ensure that other Federal agencies have access to disclo15 sure reports submitted under this section and any infor16 mation or documentation relating to disclosure reports 

17 submitted under this section.’’. 

18 SEC. 3. ENSURING COMPLIANCE WITH REPORTING RE19 QUIREMENTS. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Each Federal agency shall ensure 

21 that no Federal funds under the jurisdiction of that agen22 cy are distributed to an institution that is knowingly or 

23 willfully in violation of section 117 of the Higher Edu24 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1011f), as determined by 

25 the head of the relevant agency. 


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1 (b) DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION.—An institution 

2 that is knowingly or willfully in violation of section 117 

3 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1011f), 

4 as determined by the Secretary of Education, shall not be 

5 eligible to receive Federal funds distributed by the Depart6 ment of Education, except funds provided under title IV 

7 of the Higher Education Act of 1965. 

8 (c) DEFINITION OF INSTITUTION.—In this section, 

9 the term ‘‘institution’’ has the meaning given that term 

10 in section 117 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

11 U.S.C. 1011f). 

12 SEC. 4. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

13 This Act and the amendments made by this Act take 

14 effect on June 30 of the year following the year of enact15 ment of this Act. 

Æ 


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