Think Tank and Nonprofit Foreign Influence Disclosure Act
Bill: H.R.1970 | Sponsor: Rep. Gooden, Lance (R-TX)
Policy area: Taxation

Summary:
Think Tank and Nonprofit Foreign Influence Disclosure Act
This bill requires tax-exempt charitable organizations to disclose in annual reports contributions and gifts exceeding $50,000 received from foreign governments and foreign political parties. The reports must disclose the names of such governments and political parties and the aggregate amounts of contributions and gifts.
The bill requires the Department of the Treasury to make publicly available in a searchable database information relating to such gifts and contributions received from foreign governments and political parties and the aggregate amount received in each year from the the People's Republic of China, and (stated separately) from the Chinese Communist Party.

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide for the public 
reporting of certain contributions received by charitable organizations 
        from foreign governments and foreign political parties.

    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 ``Think Tank and Nonprofit Foreign 
Influence Disclosure Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Foreign governments and foreign political parties 
        attempt to influence the government and political system of the 
        United States through donations to nonprofit charitable 
        organizations especially think tanks and cultural 
        organizations.
            (2) While institutions of higher learning are required to 
        disclose foreign gifts to the Department of Education pursuant 
        to the Higher Education Act, no such requirement exists for 
        think tanks.
            (3) A number of think tanks and cultural organizations 
        incorporated in the United States have received money from the 
        United Front Work Department of the Chinese Communist Party--an 
        organization based on conducting political warfare against 
        enemies of the Chinese Communist Party and undermining 
        democracy around the world.
            (4) The Department of Defense found in its Military and 
        Strategic Developments Involving the People's Republic of China 
        2019 Report that: ``China conducts influence operations against 
        cultural institutions, media organizations, and the business, 
        academic, and policy communities of the United States, other 
        countries, and international institutions to achieve outcomes 
        favorable to its security and military strategy objectives. . . 
        . China harnesses academia and educational institutions, think 
        tanks, and state-run media to advance its soft power campaign 
        in support of China's security interests.''.
            (5) A report by the U.S. China Security and Economic 
        Commission noted that a number of Washington DC think tanks and 
        universities have received funding from Tung Cheehwa, a vice 
        chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative 
        Conference, which is a group that directs the United Front Work 
        Department.
            (6) The Center for a New American Security noted in its 
        2019 report ``Rising to the China Challenge'' that: ``A number 
        of U.S. universities, academic departments, individual 
        scholars, think tanks, and other civil society organizations 
        receive substantial funding from Beijing that is often targeted 
        at shaping views and discourse on China. Higher degrees of 
        transparency can help to ensure that this funding is not 
        generating hidden forms of foreign lobbying, self censorship, 
        or other activities that undermine core U.S. democratic 
        principles.''.
            (7) Bill Gertz of the Washington Free Beacon reported on 
        August 28, 2018, that: ``In addition to Johns Hopkins, other 
        think tanks linked to China and influential in American policy 
        circles include the Brookings Institution, Atlantic Council, 
        Center for American Progress, EastWest Institute, Carter 
        Center, and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.''.

SEC. 3. ANNUAL DISCLOSURE OF CONTRIBUTIONS FROM FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS AND 
              POLITICAL PARTIES BY CERTAIN TAX-EXEMPT ORGANIZATIONS.

    (a) Reporting Requirement.--Section 6033(b) of the Internal Revenue 
Code of 1986 is amended by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph 
(15), by redesignating paragraph (16) as paragraph (17) and by 
inserting after paragraph (15) the following new paragraph:
            ``(16) with respect to each government of a foreign country 
        (within the meaning of section 1(e) of the Foreign Agents 
        Registration Act of 1938 (22 U.S.C. 611(e))) and each foreign 
        political party (within the meaning of section 1(f) of such Act 
        (22 U.S.C. 611(f)) which made aggregate contributions and gifts 
        to the organization during the year in excess of $50,000, the 
        name of such government or political party and such aggregate 
        amount, and''.
    (b) Public Disclosure.--Section 6104 of such Code is amended by 
adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(e) Public Disclosure of Certain Information.--The Secretary 
shall make publicly available in a searchable database the following 
information:
            ``(1) The information furnished under section 6033(b)(16) 
        of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended by this 
        section.
            ``(2) The name of the organization furnishing the 
        information described in paragraph (1).
            ``(3) The aggregate amount reported under such section as 
        having been received as contributions or gifts in each year 
        from the People's Republic of China and (stated separately) 
        from the Chinese Communist Party.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to returns filed for taxable years beginning after the date of 
the enactment of this Act.
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