As a member of Congress, it is my duty to protect the freedom and democracy that define our nation. Growing up as the son of refugees who fled communist Vietnam, I am all too familiar with the consequences of these values being cast aside and trampled on.
Not every threat to our most cherished values presents itself in rebellion or combat. Our country must do everything to protect our most cherished institutions that keep American companies ahead of their global competitors and ensure that our national security apparatus is second to none. In medicine, defense, agriculture, technology, and so much more, American universities are indispensable resources to drive innovation and keep our country strong.
That’s why I voted for the DETERRENT Act — a bill that directly addresses a growing threat to our academic institutions and, ultimately, our national security.
The DETERRENT Act requires universities to report to the U.S. Department of Education any foreign gifts or contracts over $50,000. The law will prevent foreign governments deemed a “foreign entity of concern,” like the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), Iran, or Russia, from using financial donations to gain influence over U.S. academic institutions. Often, these contributions are a methodical, calculated effort to steal our intellectual property, undermine our research, and shape the outcomes of American academic work to serve foreign interests, not ours.
This is not a theoretical problem. Georgia Tech used Department of Defense resources for a research partnership with Tianjin University, which was blacklisted by the U.S. government for stealing American military technology. Georgia Tech also accepted millions of dollars from the Chinese Communist Party to support its partnership with Tianjin University. The university did not disclose these funds to U.S. officials despite the threat to national security.
In my own state, the University of California, Berkeley failed to disclose a massive $220 million investment from the CCP government intended to build a research campus in Shenzhen, China. Despite the project’s massive scale and its direct ties to national security-sensitive fields like semiconductor research, Berkeley did not report the Chinese financial backing to the U.S. Department of Education. Berkeley also failed to report a $19 million contract it had with Tsinghua University, despite this funding benefiting faculty members and researchers working on sensitive technologies. The institute worked with sanctioned Chinese companies and allowed the Chinese Communist Party government to gain access to critical intellectual property developed through the research, as well as exclusive tours of U.S. semiconductor labs.
The DETERRENT Act brings transparency to the relationship between U.S. universities and foreign entities, ensuring that potential conflicts of interest and security risks are identified before they can do any damage. It also enforces strong consequences for noncompliance, ensuring that those who attempt to sidestep these rules are held accountable.
I look forward to working with my colleagues to find a bipartisan solution to designate the communist regime of Vietnam a foreign entity of concern to acknowledge the regime’s gross abuse of human rights and suppression of freedom.
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As adversaries like the Chinese Communist Party, Iran, and Russia seek to expand their influence within U.S. institutions, we must remain vigilant. This bill is a critical step toward ensuring that our academic institutions stay true to their mission of advancing knowledge for the benefit of all Americans, free from the undue influence of foreign adversaries. The DETERRENT Act helps preserve the integrity of our universities and protects the innovations that keep America ahead.
Derek Tran represents California’s 45th congressional district.
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