I 
119TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 6428 
To require the Secretary of State to submit a report on participation in 
educational and cultural exchange programs. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
DECEMBER 4, 2025 
Mr. BERA (for himself and Mr. WILSON of South Carolina) introduced the 
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 
A BILL 
To require the Secretary of State to submit a report on 
participation in educational and cultural exchange programs. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. PROMOTING UNITED STATES EDUCATIONAL 
AND CULTURAL EXCHANGE PROGRAMS. 
(a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con-
gress that— 
(1) Congress recognizes the critical role of 
international exchange and study abroad programs 
in advancing United States national security inter-
ests, strengthening diplomatic ties, and fostering 
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global leadership skills among emerging leaders, par-
ticularly in regions vital to United States strategic 
interests; 
(2) educational and cultural exchange programs 
are critical soft power tools for building influence 
with the next generation of leaders in partner na-
tions; 
(3) the People’s Republic of China is actively 
deploying such programs to expand its influence; 
and 
(4) the United States must expand and 
strengthen its own exchange programs to maintain 
and advance United States strategic interests glob-
ally. 
(b) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, and 
every 5 years thereafter, the Secretary of State shall 
submit to the appropriate congressional committees 
a report that includes— 
(A) a list, disaggregated by country, of the 
number of individuals who participated in edu-
cational or cultural exchange programs spon-
sored or funded by the People’s Republic of 
China in the previous year; 
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(B) a list, disaggregated by country, of the 
number of individuals who participated in a 
program described in paragraph (2) in the pre-
vious year; 
(C) in coordination with the Monitoring, 
Evaluation, Learning, and Innovation Unit, for 
each program described in paragraph (2)— 
(i) the amount of funds provided by 
the United States for the program; 
(ii) the number of participants in the 
program; 
(iii) the number of cohorts in the pro-
gram; 
(iv) the countries of origin of the par-
ticipants in the program; 
(v) the ages of the participants in the 
program; 
(vi) the percent of participants in the 
program who reported a more favorable 
opinion of the United States Government 
following participation in the program; 
(vii) the percent of foreign partici-
pants who traveled to the United States 
for the first time during the program; 
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(viii) the percent of foreign partici-
pants who reported that they are more 
likely to recommend the United States as 
a good place to study following participa-
tion in the program; 
(ix) the percent of foreign participants 
who reported a more favorable opinion of 
United States citizens following participa-
tion in the program; 
(x) the percent of foreign participants 
who reported an increased understanding 
of United States culture and values as a 
result of participation in the program; 
(xi) the percent of participants who 
agreed with statements in support of 
democratic values following participation in 
the program; 
(xii) the percent of foreign partici-
pants who reported an increased network 
of United States citizens as a result of par-
ticipation in the program; and 
(xiii) the percent of participants who 
reported that they understand that the 
program they participated in is a Depart-
ment of State program; 
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(D) an assessment of trends of participa-
tion in the programs described in subparagraph 
(A) and paragraph (2) and an analysis of the 
implications of such trends for United States 
diplomatic and strategic interests; and 
(E) an analysis of the impact of such pro-
grams on the diplomatic standing and strategic 
influence of the United States and the People’s 
Republic of China in each respective country. 
(2) PROGRAMS DESCRIBED.—The programs de-
scribed in this paragraph are the following: 
(A) The Fulbright Program. 
(B) The Young African Leaders Initiative, 
including the Mandela Washington Fellowship. 
(C) The Young Southeast Asian Leaders 
Initiative. 
(D) The Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange 
and Study Program. 
(E) The Future Leaders Exchange Pro-
gram. 
(F) Any educational or cultural exchange 
program sponsored or funded by the United 
States that was previously included in a report 
required by paragraph (1). 
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(G) In the case of any report required by 
paragraph (1) submitted after the first such re-
port, not fewer than 10 educational or cultural 
exchange programs sponsored or funded by the 
United States that have not been included in a 
previous such report. 
(3) FORM.—The reports required in this sub-
section shall be submitted in an unclassified form, 
but may include a classified annex. 
(c) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES DE-
FINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘appropriate congres-
sional committees’’ means— 
(1) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the 
House of Representatives; and 
(2) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
Senate. 
Æ 
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