Haley Brown
A bill winding through the Senate aims to curb foreign influence in Florida’s colleges and universities.
The bill (SB 2010) unanimously passed the Senate Education Committee Tuesday, but not before questions from some of the committee’s Democratic members.
Gov. Ron DeSantis backs the bill. The Governor specifically called out China as a central threat at the initial unveiling of the legislation at a press conference just prior to the start of Session. Bill sponsor Sen. Manny Diaz was standing alongside DeSantis.
“China is using a wide range of methods and techniques, everything from cyber intrusions to corrupting trusted insiders. They’ve engaged in physical theft, and they’ve pioneered expansive approaches to stealing innovation for a wide range of actors, including not just Chinese intelligence services but state-owned enterprises, essentially private companies,” Diaz said at Tuesday’s committee hearing.
The bill amounts to a crackdown on foreign influence and espionage in research conducted at Florida’s colleges and universities. Under scrutiny will be researchers who and funding that comes from foreign countries. The bill names China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, Venezuela, and Syria as “foreign countries of concern.” Diaz said the list was chosen from the federal foreign adversaries list.
“Other countries, but most notably China, want to explore the openness of our academic system to accelerate their technological advancement at U.S. taxpayers’ expense,” Diaz said.
Under the bill, grant money from these countries would require universities and state agencies to disclose foreign donations and grants over $50,000 to certain state departments. Applicants for those grants would also be required to disclose all foreign financial connections with any of seven countries of concern.
The bill also requires universities with research budgets over $10 million to perform extra screening of foreign applicants for research positions and extra screening for foreign travel and activities of employees.
And the bill prohibits donations “conditioned on a program to promote the language and culture of any of seven countries of concern.”
An amendment was added during the committee hearing that Diaz said came after speaking with universities. Diaz said universities expressed concern over the mechanics of continuing their research while complying with the new vetting process.
For example, under language in the bill any contract including an “agreement for the sale of commodities” must be disclosed. Universities wanted to be sure this didn’t apply to regular office supplies like paperclips and paper.
Questions from Democratic lawmakers centered around university feedback. By the end of the bill’s hearing Sen. Shevrin Jones requested Diaz add amendments to the bill to specify a timeframe for completion of the vetting process and to ensure students completing research don’t suffer any unintended consequences.
Diaz closed by referring to past instances where foreign influence has infiltrated U.S. research. An example the Governor used during the unveiling of the legislation is Moffit Cancer Center in Tampa. A federal investigation showed top officials had questionable ties to China.
“We want to be very cognizant of who it is that is coming in, and a lot of times there have been across the country incidents where there have been folks who have been able to penetrate our institutions because of a lack of vetting. And we weren’t aware that these folks were providing information back to a country that would be an adversary of the united states,” Diaz said.
Nearly identical House companion legislation (HB 7017) is awaiting the agenda of its third and final committee, State Affairs committee.
