Relating to measures to protect institutions of higher education from foreign adversaries and to the prosecution of the criminal offense of theft of trade secrets; increasing a criminal penalty, the official text

H.B. No. 127

AN ACT

relating to measures to protect institutions of higher education

from foreign adversaries and to the prosecution of the criminal

offense of theft of trade secrets; increasing a criminal penalty.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:

SECTION 1. Subchapter Z, Chapter 51, Education Code, is

amended by adding Section 51.957 to read as follows:

Sec. 51.957. HIGHER EDUCATION RESEARCH SECURITY COUNCIL.

(a) In this section:

(1) "Council" means the Higher Education Research

Security Council established under this section.

(2) "Governing board," "institution of higher

education," "private or independent institution of higher

education," "public junior college," "public technical institute,"

and "university system" have the meanings assigned by Section

61.003.

(3) "Postsecondary educational institution" means an

institution of higher education, other than a public junior college

or public technical institute, or a private or independent tier one

research institution.

(4) "Private or independent tier one research

institution" means a private or independent institution of higher

education designated as R1: very high spending and doctorate

production in the 2025 Carnegie Classification of Institutions of

Higher Education published by the Indiana University Center for

Postsecondary Research.

(b) The Higher Education Research Security Council is

established to promote secure academic research at postsecondary

educational institutions while mitigating the risk of foreign

espionage and interference.

(c) The council is composed of the following members:

(1) one research security officer appointed by the

governing board of each university system;

(2) one additional research security officer

appointed by each governing board of a university system that

oversees one or more medical schools, as defined by Section 61.501,

if the governing board elects to make that additional appointment;

(3) one research security officer appointed by the

governing board of Texas Southern University; and

(4) one research security officer appointed by each

private or independent tier one research institution that elects to

participate in the council.

(d) A council member appointed under Subsection (c)(2) or

(4) serves as a nonvoting member.

(e) A council member serves at the will of the person who

appointed the member.

(f) A vacancy on the council shall be filled in the same

manner as the original appointment.

(g) The council member appointed under Subsection (c)(1)

for The Texas A&M University System shall serve as the initial

presiding officer of the council.

(h) The council shall:

(1) identify best practices for a postsecondary

educational institution to:

(A) conduct research securely while mitigating

the threat of foreign espionage and interference; and

(B) vet and approve any gift to a postsecondary

educational institution from an individual who is a citizen of a

foreign adversary, as defined by Section 51B.001;

(2) develop a model research security policy that a

postsecondary educational institution may adopt to improve

research security;

(3) establish an accreditation process under which the

council may award a postsecondary educational institution an

accreditation for security excellence;

(4) promote attendance at the annual academic security

and counter exploitation program seminar offered by The Texas A&M

University System; and

(5) develop and offer an annual training program for

postsecondary educational institution research security officers

that includes:

(A) background and academic history checks of

researchers; and

(B) research security and integrity tools and

software that must be used to prevent the loss of intellectual

capital.

(i) The Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board shall

provide administrative support to the council at the council's

request.

(j) The council shall meet at least once each quarter.

(k) A meeting conducted under Subsection (j) must be in

person or by video conference call, as determined by the presiding

officer.

(l) Not later than December 1 of each even-numbered year,

the council shall prepare and submit to the governor, the attorney

general's office, and the presiding officer of each legislative

committee with primary jurisdiction over higher education a report

on the status of research security at postsecondary educational

institutions and any associated recommendations.

(m) Unless otherwise approved by the council for

dissemination to postsecondary educational institutions,

information produced by the council under Subsection (h) is

confidential and is not subject to disclosure under Chapter 552,

Government Code. A report submitted under Subsection (l) is

confidential and is not subject to disclosure under Chapter 552,

Government Code.

(n) The council may solicit and accept gifts, grants, and

donations for purposes of this section but may not solicit or accept

a gift, grant, or donation from an entity or country:

(1) prohibited from participating in federal

contracts under Section 889, John S. McCain National Defense

Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (Pub. L. No. 115-232);

(2) identified as a Chinese military company by the

United States Department of Defense in accordance with Section

1260H, William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization

Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (Pub. L. No. 116-283);

(3) owned by the government of a country designated as

a foreign adversary by the United States secretary of commerce

under 15 C.F.R. Section 791.4; or

(4) controlled by a governing or regulatory body

located in a country described by Subdivision (3).

SECTION 2. Subtitle A, Title 3, Education Code, is amended

by adding Chapter 51B to read as follows:

CHAPTER 51B. HIGHER EDUCATION RESEARCH AND PROTECTION

SUBCHAPTER A. GENERAL PROVISIONS

Sec. 51B.001. DEFINITIONS. In this chapter:

(1) "Company" has the meaning assigned by Section

117.001, Business & Commerce Code.

(2) "Coordinating board" means the Texas Higher

Education Coordinating Board.

(3) "Council" means the Higher Education Research

Security Council established under Section 51.957.

(4) "Foreign adversary" means a country:

(A) 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); or

(B) designated by the governor after

consultation with the director of the Department of Public Safety.

(5) "Foreign government" means the government or an

agent of a country, nation, or group of nations, or a province or

other political subdivision of a country or nation, other than the

United States government.

(6) "Foreign source" means:

(A) a foreign government or agency of a foreign

government;

(B) a legal entity created solely under the laws

of a foreign adversary and having its principal place of business in

a foreign adversary;

(C) a partnership, association, organization, or

other combination of persons, or a subsidiary of such an entity,

organized under the laws of and having its principal place of

business in a foreign adversary;

(D) a political party of a foreign adversary; or

(E) an agent acting on behalf of an entity

described by Paragraph (A), (B), (C), or (D).

(7) "Gift" means any gift of money or property.

(8) "Institution of higher education" has the meaning

assigned by Section 61.003, except that the term does not include a

public junior college or public technical institute as defined by

that section.

(9) "Political party" means an organization or

combination of individuals whose aim or purpose is, or who are

engaged in an activity devoted to, the establishment, control, or

acquisition of administration or control of a government, or the

furtherance or influencing of the political or public interest,

policies, or relations of a government.

Sec. 51B.002. RULES. The coordinating board shall adopt

rules necessary to implement this chapter.

SUBCHAPTER B. REQUIREMENTS FOR GIFTS FROM AND CONTRACTS WITH

FOREIGN ADVERSARIES AND CERTAIN COMPANIES

Sec. 51B.051. GIFT FROM FOREIGN ADVERSARY. (a) Except as

provided by Subsection (c), an institution of higher education or

employee of an institution of higher education may not accept a gift

the institution or employee knows is directly or indirectly offered

from a foreign source of a foreign adversary unless the gift is of

de minimis value, as determined by coordinating board rule in

consultation with the council.

(b) An institution of higher education shall:

(1) include the prohibition described by Subsection

(a) in the institution's ethics policy; and

(2) create a mechanism by which an employee of the

institution may report being offered from a foreign source of a

foreign adversary a gift prohibited by Subsection (a).

(c) An institution of higher education may accept a gift of

more than de minimis value from a citizen of a foreign adversary

only if:

(1) the citizen is an individual;

(2) the institution uses the best practices adopted by

the council under Section 51.957(h)(1)(B) to vet and approve the

gift; and

(3) if the gift has a value of more than $25,000, the

gift is approved by the chief executive officer of the institution

and disclosed to the council at an interval established by the

council.

(d) A gift described by Subsection (c) is not subject to

disclosure under Chapter 552, Government Code, except as otherwise

required by federal or state law.

(e) Each institution of higher education that submits

reporting on foreign gift and contract disclosures to the United

States Department of Education required under Section 117, Higher

Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. Section 1001 et seq.), shall submit

that reporting to the coordinating board at the time when the

institution is required to submit that reporting to the United

States Department of Education.

(f) Not later than December 1 of each year, the coordinating

board shall submit to the governor, the lieutenant governor, and

the speaker of the house of representatives a report detailing the

information submitted by institutions of higher education under

Subsection (e) for that year.

(g) Information required to be reported under this section

is not confidential except as otherwise provided by federal or

state law or unless protected as a trade secret by federal or state

law.

Sec. 51B.052. INVESTIGATION. (a) An institution of higher

education shall investigate an alleged violation of this subchapter

if the institution receives:

(1) a complaint from a compliance officer of a state

agency or the institution; or

(2) a sworn complaint based on substantive information

and reasonable belief.

(b) An institution of higher education may request from any

person records relevant to a reasonable suspicion of a violation of

this subchapter. A person who receives a request under this

subsection shall produce the records not later than the 10th

business day after the date the person receives the request, unless

the institution and the person agree to a later date.

SUBCHAPTER C. ACADEMIC PARTNERSHIPS AND STUDENT ASSOCIATIONS

Sec. 51B.101. DEFINITIONS. In this subchapter:

(1) "Academic partnership" means a written statement

of mutual interest in cultural exchange or academic or research

collaboration or a faculty or student exchange program, study

abroad program, matriculation program, recruiting program, or dual

degree program.

(2) "Benefit" and "student organization" have the

meanings assigned by Section 51.9315.

Sec. 51B.102. CERTAIN INTERNATIONAL ACADEMIC PARTNERSHIPS

PROHIBITED. (a) An institution of higher education may not

participate in an academic partnership with a foreign source of a

foreign adversary, or an entity controlled by a foreign adversary,

that:

(1) constrains the institution's freedom of contract;

(2) allows the institution's curriculum or values to

be directed, controlled, or influenced by the foreign adversary; or

(3) promotes an agenda detrimental to the safety or

security of this state, the residents of this state, or the United

States.

(b) The council shall establish:

(1) best practices to be used by an institution of

higher education when entering into an academic partnership with a

foreign source of a foreign adversary; and

(2) a process by which an institution of higher

education annually shall certify to the council the institution's

compliance or noncompliance with the best practices established

under Subdivision (1).

(c) Not later than December 1 of each year, the council

shall submit to the governor, the lieutenant governor, and the

speaker of the house of representatives a report identifying each

institution of higher education that did not certify the

institution's compliance with the best practices under Subsection

(b) in the 12 months preceding the date of the report.

Sec. 51B.103. PROHIBITIONS IN RELATION TO CERTAIN FOREIGN

INFLUENCE ON STUDENT ORGANIZATION. (a) A student organization at

an institution of higher education may not:

(1) accept a gift from a foreign adversary or an agent

of a foreign adversary; or

(2) enter into a contract or agreement with a foreign

adversary or an agent of a foreign adversary under which the student

organization receives financial support.

(b) Subsection (a) does not prohibit a student organization

at an institution of higher education from accepting member dues or

fees.

(c) Each student organization at an institution of higher

education annually shall certify to the institution the

organization's compliance with Subsection (a).

(d) Notwithstanding Section 51.9315, an institution of

higher education may not provide any benefit to a student

organization that violates this section. An institution of higher

education that determines a student organization has violated this

section shall terminate the organization's recognition or

registration, as applicable.

SUBCHAPTER D. SCREENING OF FOREIGN RESEARCHERS

Sec. 51B.151. SCREENING OF FOREIGN RESEARCHERS REQUIRED.

(a) Before offering a person employment for a research or

research-related support position at the institution or granting a

person access to research data or activities or other sensitive

data of the institution, an institution of higher education must

screen the person as provided by this subchapter if the person:

(1) is a citizen of a foreign country and is not a

permanent resident of the United States; or

(2) is affiliated with an institution or program, or

has at least one year of employment or training, in a foreign

adversary, other than employment or training by an agency of the

United States.

(b) A screening under this section must include a background

check to determine if the person has any ties to a foreign adversary

that would prevent the person from being able to maintain the

security or integrity of the institution of higher education and

research data or activities or other sensitive data of the

institution. The council may establish a risk-based framework for

the screening of a person under this subchapter, which may

prescribe low-risk circumstances under which the screening may be

waived.

(c) If an institution of higher education procures a third

party to conduct a background check under Subsection (b), the

institution may consult with the Department of Public Safety and

the council in determining whether the third party is qualified to

conduct a background check that meets the requirements of that

subsection.

(d) An institution of higher education may screen

additional persons as provided by this subchapter for a position

described by Subsection (a) at the institution's discretion.

(e) An institution of higher education may waive the

screening requirement under Subsection (a) for a person who

possesses an active United States government security clearance

issued by a federal agency.

Sec. 51B.152. EMPLOYMENT: REQUIRED MATERIALS. (a) An

institution of higher education must require a person subject to

screening under Section 51B.151 to submit to the institution:

(1) if the person is a citizen of a foreign country, a

copy of the person's passport and nonimmigrant visa application

most recently submitted to the United States Department of State;

and

(2) any additional information as determined by the

council.

(b) An institution of higher education may destroy or return

to a person subject to screening under Section 51B.151 the copy of

the person's nonimmigrant visa application submitted under

Subsection (a)(1) after extracting all information relevant to the

requirements of this subchapter.

Sec. 51B.153. RESEARCH SECURITY OFFICE. (a) The chief

administrative officer of an institution of higher education shall

establish a research security office to:

(1) review the materials submitted to the institution

by a person under Section 51B.152;

(2) take reasonable steps to verify the information in

the submission; and

(3) take any other action the office considers

appropriate.

(b) A research security office established under this

section may serve in an institutional or system-wide capacity.

(c) An institution of higher education may direct the

research security office to approve persons for hire using a

risk-based determination that considers the nature of the research

and the person's background and ongoing affiliations.

(d) An institution of higher education must complete the

requirements of this subchapter before:

(1) hiring a person described by Section 51B.151(a) in

a research or research-related support position; or

(2) granting the person access to research data or

activities or other sensitive data.

(e) An institution of higher education may not employ a

person subject to screening under Section 51B.151 in a research or

research-related support position if the person fails to disclose

in the submission a substantial educational, employment, or

research-related activity, publication, or presentation unless the

applicable department head or the department head's designee

certifies in writing the substance of the failure to disclose and

the reasons for disregarding that failure. A copy of the

certification must be kept in the investigative file of the

research security office.

(f) The research security office shall report to any law

enforcement agency designated by the governor or the institution of

higher education's governing board the identity of a person who is

rejected for employment based on the screening required by this

subchapter or other risk-based screening.

SUBCHAPTER E. FOREIGN TRAVEL

Sec. 51B.201. FOREIGN TRAVEL. (a) An institution of higher

education shall establish an international travel approval and

monitoring program.

(b) The program must establish a risk-based framework for

employment-related foreign travel approval, including health,

safety, and security factors.

(c) A research security office must preapprove certain

employment-related foreign travel according to the risk-based

framework established under the program. The preapproval must

require a traveling employee to review and acknowledge guidance

related to foreign adversaries or countries under sanctions or

other restrictions by this state or the United States government.

(d) A traveling employee must agree to comply with the

institution of higher education's limitation on travel and

activities abroad and all applicable federal laws.

Sec. 51B.202. MAINTENANCE OF RECORDS AND REPORT. (a) An

institution of higher education shall maintain for at least three

years, or any longer period of time required by applicable federal

or state law, records relating to employment-related foreign travel

to and activities involving a foreign adversary by a faculty

member, researcher, or research department staff member of the

institution, including:

(1) each foreign travel request and approval;

(2) expenses reimbursed by the institution for foreign

travel, including for travel, food, and lodging;

(3) payments and honoraria received during foreign

travel and activities, including for travel, food, and lodging;

(4) a statement of the purpose of each foreign travel;

and

(5) any record related to the foreign activity review.

(b) An institution of higher education shall annually

submit to the institution's governing board a report on

employment-related foreign travel by a faculty member, researcher,

or research department staff member of the institution to a foreign

adversary. The report must list each traveler, foreign location

visited, and foreign institution visited.

SUBCHAPTER F. FOREIGN ADVERSARY EDUCATION SOFTWARE

Sec. 51B.251. REVIEW OF EDUCATION SOFTWARE. (a) The

council, in coordination with the coordinating board, shall:

(1) conduct a thorough review of the use of testing,

tutoring, or other education software owned or controlled by a

foreign adversary or a company domiciled or headquartered in a

foreign adversary; and

(2) publish a list of prohibited software on the

coordinating board's Internet website.

(b) An institution of higher education may not enter into or

renew a contract to provide testing, tutoring, or other education

software included on the list published under Subsection (a)(2).

SUBCHAPTER G. ENFORCEMENT

Sec. 51B.301. ENFORCEMENT. (a) An institution of higher

education may not spend money appropriated to the institution for a

state fiscal year until the governing board of the institution

submits to the governor, the legislature, the coordinating board,

and the council a report certifying the governing board's

compliance with this chapter during the preceding state fiscal

year.

(b) In the interim between each regular session of the

legislature, the governing board of each institution of higher

education, or the board's designee, shall testify before the

standing legislative committees with primary jurisdiction over

higher education at a public hearing of the committee regarding the

board's compliance with this chapter.

(c) The state auditor shall periodically conduct a

compliance audit of each institution of higher education to

determine whether the institution has spent state money in

violation of this section. The state auditor shall adopt a schedule

by which the state auditor will conduct compliance audits under

this subsection. The schedule must ensure that each institution of

higher education is audited at least once every four years.

(d) If the state auditor determines pursuant to a compliance

audit conducted under Subsection (c) that an institution of higher

education has spent state money in violation of this section, the

institution:

(1) must cure the violation not later than the 180th

day after the date on which the determination is made; and

(2) if the institution fails to cure the violation

during the period described by Subdivision (1), is ineligible to

receive formula funding increases, institutional enhancements, or

exceptional items during the state fiscal biennium immediately

following the state fiscal biennium in which the determination is

made.

SECTION 3. Section 31.05(a), Penal Code, is amended by

adding Subdivisions (2-a), (2-b), and (2-c) to read as follows:

(2-a) "Foreign agent" means an officer, employee,

proxy, servant, delegate, or representative of a foreign

government.

(2-b) "Foreign government" has the meaning assigned by

Section 51B.001, Education Code.

(2-c) "Foreign instrumentality" means an agency,

bureau, ministry, component, institution, association, or legal,

commercial, or business organization, corporation, firm, or entity

that is substantially owned, controlled, sponsored, commanded,

managed, or dominated by a foreign government.

SECTION 4. Section 31.05(c), Penal Code, is amended to read

as follows:

(c) An offense under this section is a felony of the third

degree, except that the offense is a felony of the second degree if

it is shown on the trial of the offense that the person who

committed the offense intended to benefit a foreign agent, foreign

government, or foreign instrumentality.

SECTION 5. (a) Not later than October 1, 2025, the

appropriate entities shall designate the members of the Higher

Education Research Security Council established under Section

51.957, Education Code, as added by this Act.

(b) Not later than January 1, 2026, the Higher Education

Research Security Council established under Section 51.957,

Education Code, as added by this Act, shall hold its initial

meeting.

SECTION 6. The changes in law made by this Act to Section

31.05, Penal Code, apply only to an offense committed on or after

the effective date of this Act. An offense committed before the

effective date of this Act is governed by the law in effect on the

date the offense was committed, and the former law is continued in

effect for that purpose. For purposes of this section, an offense

was committed before the effective date of this Act if any element

of the offense occurred before that date.

SECTION 7. Section 51B.103, Education Code, as added by

this Act, applies beginning with the 2025-2026 academic year.

SECTION 8. Sections 51B.051, 51B.102(b), 51B.151, and

51B.152, Education Code, as added by this Act, apply beginning with

the academic year immediately following the adoption of standards

relating to those sections by the Higher Education Research

Security Council established under Section 51.957, Education Code,

as added by this Act.

SECTION 9. Section 51B.301(a), Education Code, as added by

this Act, applies beginning with money appropriated to a public

institution of higher education for the state fiscal year beginning

September 1, 2026.

SECTION 10. This Act takes effect September 1, 2025.

______________________________
______________________________

President of the Senate
Speaker of the House

I certify that H.B. No. 127 was passed by the House on May 15,

2025, by the following vote: Yeas 131, Nays 8, 2 present, not

voting; and that the House concurred in Senate amendments to H.B.

No. 127 on May 30, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 130, Nays 4, 2

present, not voting.

______________________________

Chief Clerk of the House

I certify that H.B. No. 127 was passed by the Senate, with

amendments, on May 29, 2025, by the following vote: Yeas 29, Nays

2.

______________________________

Secretary of the Senate

APPROVED: __________________

Date

__________________

Governor