Section 117 of the Higher Education Act: Reporting of Foreign Gifts and Contracts
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February 26, 2025
Section 117 of the Higher Education Act: Reporting of Foreign Gifts and Contracts
, ; P.L. 89-329, as amended) establishes foreign gift and contract reporting requirements for certain domestic public and private institutions that (1) offer a bachelor’'s degree or higher (or offer a transfer program of at least two years), (2) are accredited by a nationally recognized accrediting agency, and (3) receive federal financial assistance.
Institutions meeting these criteria must report all foreign gifts and contractseach foreign gift or contract that alone, or in combination with all others from theother gifts and contracts from a single foreign source, total $250,000 or more in a calendar year. The U.S. Department of Education’'s (ED’'s) Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA)General Counsel is responsible for Section 117 compliance, including collecting and disseminating data on foreign gift and contract disclosures.
Congress has shown a particular interest in compliance with Section 117 with respect to gifts and contracts attributable to companies based in or citizens of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Concerns about foreign influence on institutions of higher education (IHEs) have centered on the
In recent years, Congress and the Administration have shown an increased focus on institutional compliance with Section 117. Concerns about foreign influence on institutions of higher education have centered on the "theft of proprietary research, promotion of propaganda and disinformation, and the imposition of political or cultural values through curricular or extracurricular programming.
Reporting Requirements
Institutions must file biannual Section 117 reports by January 31 or July 31, whichever is sooner The information an institution must report varies somewhat depending on whether a gift or contract is from a foreign government or a foreign nongovernmental source and whether a gift or contract is a "restricted or conditional gift or contract." A foreign government source includes an agency of a foreign government. A foreign nongovernmental source is any foreign source other than a foreign government. A "restricted or conditional gift or contract" means, in regard to receipt of the depending on the transaction date, regarding the receipt of a foreign gift or entry into thea foreign contract.
contract. Table 1 outlines statutory reporting requirements.
Table 1. Section 117 Reporting Requirements
Required
Information UGS UNGS RGS RNGS
Aggregate amount ✓ ✓ ✓ ✓
Country of citizenship or principal residence of foreign source
N/A ✓ N/A ✓
Country of incorporation or principal place of business of foreign source
N/A ✓ N/A ✓
Date of receipt ✖ ✖ ✓ ✓
Description of restrictions
✖ ✖ ✓ ✓
Source: Section 117 of the Higher Education Act of 1965.
Notes: UGS = unrestricted governmental source, UNGS = nongovernmental source, RGS = restricted governmental source, RNGS = nonrestricted governmental source, N/A = not applicable.
“Restricted” means any endowment, gift, grant, contract, award, present, or property of any kind which includes provisions regarding
•(A) the employment, assignment, or termination of faculty;
•(B) the establishment of departments, centers, research or
lecture programs, or new faculty positions;
•(C) the selection or admission of students; or
•(D) the award of grants, loans, scholarships, fellowships, or
other forms of financial aid restricted to students of a specified country, religion, sex, ethnic origin, or political opinion.
When an institution is itself owned or controlled by a foreign source, reports must include the identity of the foreign source, the date on which the foreign source assumed ownership or control of the institution, and any changes in program or structure resulting from the change in ownership or control.
Examples of Reported Data
Since 2020, ED has published biannual spreadsheets to meet Section 117’s public disclosure requirement. ED has also published consolidated data covering gifts and contracts reported from January 1, 2014, to June 30, 2020.
As of October 15, 2024, the largest reported foreign gift any institution ever received was $458 million in 2023 to Morningside University in Iowa from an individual or business attributable to the British overseas territory of Bermuda. The second largest was a gift of $104 million in 2023 to the University of Chicago from an individual or business attributable to Australia.
The largest foreign government restricted contract was a $284 million contract that the government of Kuwait awarded to the University of Missouri in Kansas City for the purposes of tuition reimbursement for Kuwaiti students attending during the fall 2023 semester. The second largest was a $139 million contract that the government of Oman awarded to Washington State University (WSU). Omani students who met WSU admission qualifications received a simplified application process, for which WSU received “financial considerations” after accepting a minimum number of Omani students. The two largest unrestricted foreign government contracts were in the amount of $431
Section 117 of the Higher Education Act: Reporting of Foreign Gifts and Contracts
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million and $286 million between Germany and the University of Pennsylvania.
The most recent data includes more than 6,500 gifts and contracts attributable to companies or citizens of the PRC. The largest such gift or contract was a $60 million contract entered into in 2018 by the University of California, Los Angeles, followed by a $57 million contract entered into in 2014 by the Juilliard School.
Enforcement Actions
Under HEA Section 487(a)(17), ED has the authority to implement a range of consequences for noncompliance such as fines, limitations, and suspension of HEA Title IV participation. HEA Section 117(f) specifies other consequences that apply to both Title IV and non-Title IV participating schools, including civil action and reimbursement of all costs related to investigation and enforcement.
For Title IV-participating institutions, the ultimate consequence for noncompliance would be the termination of their eligibility to participate in federal student aid programs (e.g., Pell Grants, Direct Loans). Historically, ED has not used this most severe penalty and has instead entered into resolution agreements with noncompliant institutions, which detail reforms to be implemented. In the event of any of the sanctions described above, an institution would still retain its right to appeal.
ED publishes notices of compliance review and records requests as well as inquiry responses to congressional requests.
Open and Closed Investigations
Although Section 117 was enacted in 1986, ED began to more proactively monitor and investigate disclosures in 2019. These actions were part of a broader multi-agency effort to mitigate malign and undue foreign influence. The Senate Subcommittee on Investigations held a hearing, also in 2019, and issued a report on the PRC’s influence in higher education, which was followed by a 2020 report from ED’s Office of the General Counsel. Both reports highlighted that up to 70% of all U.S. colleges and universities had failed to comply with Section 117, and those that did “substantially” underreported.
|
Required Information |
UGGC |
UNGC |
RGGC |
RNGC |
|
Aggregate amount |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
✓ |
|
Country of citizenship or principal residence of foreign source |
N/A |
✓ |
N/A |
✓ |
|
Country of incorporation or principal place of business of foreign source |
N/A |
✓ |
N/A |
✓ |
|
Date of receipt |
✖ |
✖ |
✓ |
✓ |
|
Description of restrictions |
✖ |
✖ |
✓ |
✓ |
Source: HEA §117
Notes: UGGC = unrestricted governmental gift or contract, UNGC = unrestricted nongovernmental gift or contract, RGGC = restricted governmental gift or contract, RNGC = restricted nongovernmental gift or contract, N/A = not applicable.
When a domestic institution is itself owned or controlled by a foreign source, reports must include the identity of the foreign source, the date on which the foreign source assumed ownership or control of the institution, and any resulting changes in program or structure.
HEA Section 117(f) specifies that institutions that fail to meet reporting requirements may be subject to civil action to compel compliance and may be required to pay the federal government all costs related to investigation and enforcement. ED has interpreted the HEA to require institutions to comply with Section 117 as a condition of participation in the HEA Title IV student financial aid programs (e.g., Pell Grants, Direct Loans). Failure to do so could result in ED imposing a range of consequences including, for example, fines and termination of an institution's eligibility to participate in the HEA Title IV programs.
Examples of Reported Data
To comply with Section 117's public disclosure requirements, ED publishes biannual spreadsheets of all institutionally reported foreign gifts and contracts since enactment of Section 117 in 1986. In January 2026, ED established a new Section 117 portal, through which institutions report their Section 117 data and the public may access the biannual spreadsheets and review summary information about institutions' reported data.
As of February 23, 2026, Qatar was the country of attribution with the largest dollar amount of reported transactions (about $8.8 billion), representing about 1,300 transactions. China was the country of attribution with the second largest dollar amount of reported transactions (about $4.9 billion), representing about 8,000 transactions. Canada and England were the countries of attribution with the highest and second highest number of reported transactions—11,896 and 11,872, respectively—representing about $4.2 billion and $4.3 billion, respectively.
Harvard University was the institution that received the largest aggregate dollar amount of gifts and contracts from foreign sources, totaling about $4.5 billion, followed by Cornell University with $4.2 billion.
The largest reported contract any institution has ever entered into was a restricted contract between Cornell University and a foreign legal entity in Qatar valued at about $1.1 billion for the award period of January 1, 2026-June 30, 2032. The contract was for the establishment and support of Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar, which is "the first American medical school established outside of the United States" and "was founded in 2001 through a partnership between Cornell University and the Qatar Foundation."
The largest reported gift any institution has ever received was $146.5 million to Georgia Southern University from an individual or business in Germany in 2022. It is unclear whether this gift is a restricted or conditional gift.
History of Enforcement Actions
Although Section 117 was enacted in 1986, ED began to more proactively monitor and investigate disclosures in 2019 as part of a broader "'whole of government' plan for protecting American national interests."
From 2019 to 2021 during the first Trump Administration, ED opened 19 investigations into Section 117 noncompliance. The Biden Administration did not open any investigations and moved compliance responsibility from the ED Office of the General Counsel to FSA. By the end of the Biden Administration, ED had resolved 10 of these 19 cases.
Recent Allegations of Noncompliance
The 118th Congress investigated several cases of underreported foreign contracts and gifts. In 2023, the Chair of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Community Party (CCP) and the Chair of the House
Education and Workforce Committee sent a joint letter to the president and chancellor of the University of California, Berkeley, and opened an investigation. The letter alleged that the university had failed to properly disclose its contracts with its PRC partners and highlighted additional security concerns over a $220 million contract to build a satellite campus in Shenzhen, China. These concerns included access to research and whether U.S. taxpayer dollars were contributing to the military and technological goals of a foreign adversary.
In September 2024, the chairs of the two previously mentioned committees released a report entitled, How American Taxpayers and Universities Fund the CCP’s Advanced Military and Technology Research. In November 2024, the chair of the House Select Committee sent a letter strongly encouraging the president of the University of Michigan to end its partnership with Shanghai Jiao Tong University. The university terminated the partnership.
Legislation in the 118th Congress
During the 118th Congress, some Members introduced bills that would have applied new reporting requirements to institutions. The DETERRENT Act (H.R. 5933), which passed the House, would have reduced the reporting threshold from $250,000 to $50,000. It would have added a new HEA Section 117B to require disclosure of foreign gifts and contracts made to certain individual staff and faculty at institutions with high or very high levels of research activity. Fines for knowing or willful violations would have varied depending on the provision violated and whether the violation was a first-time or subsequent offense. The act would have terminated Title IV eligibility for any institution that violated, for three consecutive institutional fiscal years, any requirements outlined in Section 117, as amended.
The Disclose GIFT Act (H.R. 5902) would have created a new HEA Section 117A to require institutions to report gifts and contracts awarded to individual faculty and staff and levied noncompliance fines based on the total amount of gifts or contracts. The Safeguarding American Education from Foreign Control Act (H.R. 4145/S. 2856) would have amended HEA Section 117 by requiring institutions to report gifts or contracts of any dollar amount attributable to “covered nations” considered to be a threat to U.S. economic or security interests (e.g., China, Iran, North Korea, Russia).
The RIFA Act (H.R. 6165) would have created a new HEA Section 117A to require private institutions with total assets in excess of $6 billion (excluding those assets used directly for educational purposes) or with certain “investments of concern” in excess of $250 million to file annual disclosure reports. “Investments of concern” would be defined as those attributable to a foreign country of concern or a foreign entity of concern, such as a terrorist organization.
Adam K. Edgerton, Analyst in Education Policy
IF12927
Section 117 of the Higher Education Act: Reporting of Foreign Gifts and Contracts
https://crsreports.congress.gov | IF12927 · VERSION 1 · NEW
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ED and Department of State Interagency Agreement
To "improv[e] foreign gift and contract reporting," and consistent with Executive Order 14282, ED and the U.S. Department of State (DOS) entered into an interagency agreement (IAA) on February 20, 2026, under which DOS is to carry out several Section 117 tasks "in coordination with and at the direction of" ED. Tasks to be performed by DOS include, for example, (1) administration of Section 117's institutional "biannual reporting and collection provisions of qualifying foreign source gifts and contract information" and of the Section 117 reporting portal; (2) execution of Section 117's "enforcement provisions through the initiation of civil investigations" and recovery of investigation and enforcement costs; (3) "implementation of investigative audits, programs, and other initiatives that promote Section 117 compliance" and (4) "promotion of interagency coordination information ... and records sharing to achieve robust enforcement."
Functions to be filled by ED include, for example, (1) "management and leadership" of Section 117 disclosure reporting and enforcement responsibilities and of "all enforcement reviews, inquiries, and investigations"; (2) "provision of leadership for compliance resolution processes" such as the initiation of compliance reviews and civil investigations; and (3) "coordination of reviews of documents that communicate or otherwise implement Section 117-related policies, including non-regulatory guidance."
To support implementation of the IAA, ED is to transfer funds to DOS to "cover the services provided by DOS to ED" and to detail to DOS some ED employees. The IAA is effective February 20, 2026, until terminated by ED and DOS.
The DETERRENT Act (H.R. 1048)
In the 119th Congress, the DETERRENT Act (H.R. 1048) passed the House on a bipartisan basis and was referred to the Senate. It would reduce the Section 117 reporting threshold from $250,000 to $50,000 for gifts from or contracts with a foreign source other than a foreign country of concern (e.g., a "covered nation" as defined in 10 U.S.C. §4872, such as China) or a "foreign entity of concern" (e.g., as defined in 42 U.S.C. §19221(a), such as a Secretary of State-designated foreign terrorist organization). The bill would newly prohibit institutions from entering into contracts with a foreign country or entity of concern unless ED granted a waiver, and all gifts and permitted contracts from such sources would be reportable regardless of value. The bill would also newly require qualifying institutions to maintain a publicly available and searchable database of foreign gifts and contracts made to certain individual staff and faculty and to report to ED annually information on investments purchased, sold, or held with respect to a foreign country or entity of concern (investment of concern). Fines for knowing or willful violations of these provisions would vary depending on the provision violated and whether the violation was a first-time or subsequent offense. The act would terminate Title IV eligibility for any institution against which judgment has been granted in three civil actions that resulted in the institution being compelled to comply with any of the statutory requirements. Some opponents of the bill argue it would, among other concerns, "impact the privacy of research faculty and staff, threaten productive international collaborations, and task [ED] with new authorities it is not equipped to implement."