DETERRENT Act
Latest action · Mar 31, 2025 Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedFeb 6, 2025
- Passed HouseMar 27, 2025
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Defending Education Transparency and Ending Rogue Regimes Engaging in Nefarious Transactions Act or the DETERRENT Act
This bill expands oversight and disclosure requirements related to foreign sources and institutions of higher education (IHEs).
Specifically, the bill requires an IHE to annually disclose to the Department of Education (ED) any year in which the IHE
- receives a gift from a foreign country of concern (e.g., China or Russia) or foreign entity of concern of any dollar amount;
- receives a gift or contract from a foreign source (other than a foreign country of concern or foreign entity of concern) that is valued at $50,000 or more, considered alone or in combination with all other gifts or contracts within a calendar year (current disclosure threshold is $250,000 or more), or which has an undetermined monetary value;
- enters into a contract with a foreign country of concern or foreign entity of concern after receiving a waiver for such contract; or
- is substantially controlled by a foreign source.
Additionally, the bill
- prohibits IHEs from entering into contracts with a foreign country of concern or with a foreign entity of concern without obtaining a waiver,
- requires certain IHEs to disclose gifts or contracts between covered individuals (e.g., researchers) and foreign sources, and
- requires private IHEs with specified assets or investments to file annual investment disclosure reports.
The bill requires ED to investigate possible violations of this bill and outlines the various penalties for each violation. Penalties may include losing eligibility for federal student financial aid.
Recorded votes 5
Newest first. Open one to see how every member voted.
| Roll call | Question | Result | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| House 83 | On Passage | Passed241–169 | Mar 27, 2025 |
| House 82 | On Agreeing to the Amendment | Failed4–404 | Mar 27, 2025 |
| House 81 | On Agreeing to the Amendment | Failed3–410 | Mar 27, 2025 |
| House 80 | On Agreeing to the Amendment | Failed92–321 | Mar 27, 2025 |
| House 79 | On Agreeing to the Amendment | Failed199–214 | Mar 27, 2025 |
Cosponsors 21
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Feb 6, 2025 to Mar 10, 2025, with 9 there on the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-UT | Burgess Owens | Original | Feb 6, 2025 |
| R-WI | Glenn Grothman | Original | Feb 6, 2025 |
| R-SC | Joe Wilson | Original | Feb 6, 2025 |
| R-CA | Kevin Kiley | Original | Feb 6, 2025 |
| R-IN | Mark B. Messmer | Original | Feb 6, 2025 |
| R-OH | Michael A. Rulli | Original | Feb 6, 2025 |
| R-GA | Rick W. Allen | Original | Feb 6, 2025 |
| R-MI | Tim Walberg | Original | Feb 6, 2025 |
| R-NC | Virginia Foxx | Original | Feb 6, 2025 |
| R-NY | Claudia Tenney | Feb 7, 2025 | |
| R-PA | Glenn Thompson | Feb 7, 2025 | |
| R-MO | Robert F. Onder, Jr. | Feb 7, 2025 | |
| R-TX | Randy K. Weber, Sr. | Feb 10, 2025 | |
| R-KY | Andy Barr | Feb 11, 2025 | |
| R-IN | Erin Houchin | Feb 12, 2025 |
Actions 35
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Mar 31, 2025Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
- Mar 27, 2025Considered as unfinished business. (consideration: CR H1312-1316)
- Mar 27, 2025Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- Mar 27, 2025On passage Passed by the Yeas and Nays: 241 - 169 (Roll no. 83).
- Mar 27, 2025Passed/agreed to in House: On passage Passed by the Yeas and Nays: 241 - 169 (Roll no. 83).
Amendments 6
Amendments offered to this bill.
| Amendment | Description | Offered by | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| HAmdt 10 | An amendment numbered 1 printed in House Report 119-38 to include any special administrative region or other territory within one of the covered nations referenced in the bill within the bill's definition of "foreign country of concern.". | Andrew Ogles R-TN | On agreeing to the Ogles amendment (A001) Agreed to by voice vote. |
| HAmdt 11 | An amendment numbered 2 printed in House Report 119-38 to amend the definition of 'foreign entity of concern' to include Chinese military companies identified on the list required by section 1260H of the FY 2021 NDAA (colloquially referred to as the "Section 1260H list"). | Andrew Ogles R-TN | On agreeing to the Ogles amendment (A002) Agreed to by voice vote. |
| HAmdt 12 | Amendment sought to amend section 117 to streamline foreign gift and contract reporting, align reporting with other federal research security compliance requirements, establish sanctions for noncompliance and require the Secretary of Education to conduct negotiated rulemaking to receive stakeholder feedback. | Robert C. "Bobby" Scott D-VA | On agreeing to the Scott (VA) amendment (A003) Failed by recorded vote: 199 - 214 (Roll no. 79). |
| HAmdt 13 | Amendment sought to amend the threshold value at which gifts must be reported from $50,000 to $1. | Keith Self R-TX | On agreeing to the Self amendment (A004) Failed by recorded vote: 92 - 321 (Roll no. 80). |
| HAmdt 14 | Amendment sought to amend the definition of "Foreign Country Of Concern". | Rashida Tlaib D-MI | On agreeing to the Tlaib amendment (A005) Failed by recorded vote: 3 - 410 (Roll no. 81). |
Related bills 6
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HRES 242 | Providing for consideration of the joint resolution (H.J. Res. 24) providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Department of Energy relating to "Energy Conservation Program: Energy C | Procedurally related | Mar 25, 2025 |
| HR 938 | No Contracts with Foreign Adversaries Act | Related bill | Feb 4, 2025 |
| HR 1018 | INSTRUCT Act of 2025 | Related bill | Feb 5, 2025 |
| HR 1023 | RIFA Act | Related bill | Feb 5, 2025 |
| S 1296 | DETERRENT Act | Related bill | Apr 3, 2025 |
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Education.
Text 4
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Mar 31, 2025Referred in Senate
- Mar 27, 2025Engrossed in House
- Mar 14, 2025Reported in House
- Feb 6, 2025Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov.
