By: Middleton, Kolkhorst S.B. No. 1067
(In the Senate - Filed February 3, 2025; February 24, 2025,
read first time and referred to Committee on Education K-16;
April 7, 2025, reported adversely, with favorable Committee
Substitute by the following vote: Yeas 11, Nays 0; April 7, 2025,
sent to printer.)
Click here to see the committee vote
COMMITTEE SUBSTITUTE FOR S.B. No. 1067 By: Paxton
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
relating to prohibiting public institutions of higher education and
employees of public institutions of higher education and their
spouses from soliciting or accepting gifts, grants, donations, or
investments from certain foreign entities.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:
SECTION 1. Subchapter Z, Chapter 51, Education Code, is
amended by adding Section 51.984 to read as follows:
Sec. 51.984. PROHIBITION ON SOLICITING OR ACCEPTING GIFTS,
GRANTS, DONATIONS, OR INVESTMENTS FROM CERTAIN FOREIGN ENTITIES.
(a) In this section:
(1) "Designated country" means:
(A) a country identified by the United States
director of national intelligence as a country that poses a risk to
the national security of the United States in at least one of the
three most recent Annual Threat Assessments of the U.S.
Intelligence Community issued pursuant to Section 108B, National
Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. Section 3043b); and
(B) a country designated by the governor after
consultation with the director of the Department of Public Safety.
(2) "Institution of higher education" has the meaning
assigned by Section 61.003.
(b) Notwithstanding any other law, an institution of higher
education or an employee or spouse of an employee of an institution
of higher education in the employee's or spouse's official or
private capacity may not solicit or accept a gift, grant, donation,
or investment from:
(1) a governmental entity of a designated country;
(2) a political party of a designated country,
including private money from any party member; or
(3) a company:
(A) that is headquartered in a designated
country; and
(B) in which a governmental entity of a
designated country holds an ownership interest.
(c) An institution of higher education shall include in any
employment contract entered into between the institution and an
employee a prohibition against the conduct described by Subsection
(b) by the employee or spouse of the employee.
(d) An institution of higher education or an employee or
spouse of an employee of an institution of higher education shall
return any money or other thing of value received in violation of
this section during the preceding state fiscal biennium to the
entity or entities that provided the money or other thing of value
to the institution, employee, or spouse of the employee.
(e) The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board may adopt
rules as necessary to implement this section.
SECTION 2. Section 51.984(c), Education Code, as added by
this Act, applies only to a contract entered into or renewed on or
after the effective date of this Act. A contract entered into or
renewed before that date is governed by the law in effect on the
date the contract was entered into or renewed, and the former law is
continued in effect for that purpose.
SECTION 3. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.
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