Jonathan Pidluzny said the DETERRENT Act would help root out maligned foreign influence, including the Chinese Communist Party, in higher education in America, on November 8. Pidluzny is the Director of the Higher Education Reform Initiative at America First Policy Institute.
"Foreign governments and entities have, for decades, used financial levers to access sensitive intellectual property and shape the cultural environment at U.S. colleges and universities. This includes hostile regimes from the Chinese Communist Party to radical Middle East dictatorships. The DETERRENT Act would improve transparency and turn back foreign influence in higher education.", said Jonathan Pidluzny.
According to Federal Newswire, the Defending Education Transparency and Ending Rogue Regimes Engaging in Nefarious Transactions (DETERRENT) Act is intended to correct attempts by CCP to intervene and influence American higher education.
A House Committee on Education & the Workforce fact-sheet on the DETERRENT Act states that a majority of American colleges and universities receive funding or donations from CCP or CCP-related entities without reporting it. "This CCP influence leads to 'pushing propaganda' and 'censoring free speech.'", said Rep. Steel while citing a 2017 Senate report which found that 70% of these institutions failed to comply with Section 117 of Higher Education Act regarding reporting of foreign funds. He criticized Section 117 for its "loose language" allowing for billions of foreign money to come in undetected.
Jonathan Pidluzny applauded Rep. Steel's DETERRENT ACT as a crucial measure enhancing transparency, countering foreign interference, protecting American interests, and safeguarding values in academia."Hostile regimes like CCP have endowed faculty chairs, stolen research secrets, funded cultural centers—all advancing their own illiberal interests," stated Pidluzny.
The DETERRENT Act will close reporting gaps ensuring enhanced transparency for Congress, intelligence agencies, and the public. The Act will reduce the foreign gift reporting threshold from $250,000 to $50,000 and will hold non-compliant institutions accountable. Rep. Steel referred to DETERRENT Act as a "crucial step towards transparency" and a tool to protect American education and students from malicious foreign influence.
Pidluzny highlighted the importance of the DETERRENT Act in making it harder for malicious foreign actors to shape campus intellectual environments or hijack research programs. He emphasized that this act is an essential step toward ensuring American campuses advance American interests and values.
