U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz introduced the Transparency in Reporting of Adversarial Contributions to Education, or TRACE Act, to enhance transparency for parents involving the influence of foreign funding in schools.
The measure awaits further action by the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.
“The Chinese Communist Party expends vast resources to control what Americans see, hear, and ultimately think. The CCP continues to target American educational institutions, as do other foreign adversaries,” said Cruz in Monday’s press release.
Cruz added, “The TRACE Act will give parents the transparency they need and deserve, and help safeguard classrooms from foreign influence. The House has already passed this bill. I urge my Senate colleagues to take it up expeditiously and pass it.”
Specifically, the TRACE Act will require schools to allow parents to review any curriculum provided by or purchased with foreign funds, notify parents of any foreign contracts or financial transactions they partake in, and notify parents of how many school employees, if any, are being compensated by another country or foreign adversary and whether foreign nations have donated to the institution.
This legislation is a companion to U.S. Rep. Aaron Bean’s (R-FL) legislation, passed in the House Committee on Education and the Workforce in June.
Congressman Bean said of the bill’s passage, “American schools are for education, not espionage. We cannot allow our students—the future of our great nation—to be corrupted by foreign adversaries who are systematically and aggressively attempting to influence our nation’s K-12 schools.”
As Texas Scorecard previously reported, the CCP and other foreign influences have developed connections to U.S. schools and universities, including Texas A&M and the University of Texas.
Often under the guise of Confucius Institutes, the Chinese government uses these institutions to spread Chinese influence in U.S. education. While many Confucius Institutes were reportedly closed, the Chinese government has rebranded programs to continue its footprint in U.S. education, such as “Confucius Classrooms” geared toward high school students.
In addition to education, China has also worked to purchase agricultural land and mineral rights, including areas near military bases in Texas, a practice many legislators and residents want to end.
At a time when illegal border crossings by Chinese nationals have increased by over 8000 percent since 2021, infiltration by China continues to be a threat to the U.S.
