The United States Department of Education announced today that it has finalized upgrades to a mandatory portal requiring institutions of higher education receiving federal funds to report foreign donations and contracts.
In a statement released Monday, Education Secretary Linda McMahon emphasized the significance of these changes. “After years of neglect by the administration, the new portal will assist our institutions in fulfilling their responsibilities,” McMahon said, highlighting improved compliance measures designed to protect national security interests regarding foreign financial relationships with US academic institutions.
The reforms come just over a year after President Donald Trump issued an executive order strengthening transparency requirements for funds originating outside the United States flowing into higher education and research organizations. That administration noted previously that only approximately 300 of roughly 6,000 colleges reported such foreign money annually.
This legal obligation stems from Section 117 of the Higher Education Act, which mandates biannual disclosures to the federal government for foreign-source gifts or contracts worth $250,000 annually or more. The legislation aims to protect national security and academic integrity by promoting transparency concerning potential foreign influence impacting higher education.
The Department also clarified that institutions demonstrating noncompliance face enforcement actions from the Department of Justice, which could include civil penalties covering compliance costs. This warning framework was deployed earlier this year with investigations opened or expanded into Harvard University, the University of California system (including Berkeley), the University of Michigan, the University of Pennsylvania, and the University of Texas System.
According to government officials, formal records demands accompanied by 30-day deadlines were issued during these probes, carrying a significant risk of DOE-driven enforcement actions should institutions fail to meet their reporting obligations. The threat includes not only legal consequences but also potential loss or suspension of federal funding.
The enhanced portal was recently tested in beta for three days among nine major universities, including the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Southern California, before its scheduled launch on January 2nd, according to the Department’s release.
These measures follow a September 2024 report by House Select Committee on China that detailed alleged cases where federally funded researchers provided technology to China with military applications, posing a potential threat to US national security.
