HB127

HB127 creates a university research-security council and rules for covered public higher-education institutions on foreign gifts, partnerships, researchers, travel and software. It also increases the penalty for stealing trade secrets with intent to benefit a foreign government or its representatives. It is not a blanket ban on international students or foreign academic collaboration. Final law; official history.

Who is covered. New Education Code Chapter 51B covers public institutions within Section 61.003’s definition—including universities, medical/dental units, public state colleges and other higher-education agencies—but excludes public junior colleges and public technical institutes. The council also allows qualifying private R1 research institutions to participate; that does not make all of Chapter 51B apply to private colleges. “Foreign adversary” in this chapter means a country identified as a national-security risk in at least one of the three most recent U.S. intelligence community annual threat assessments, or designated by the governor after consulting the public-safety director. It is not simply every foreign country or a fixed list printed in HB127. Final law, Sections 1–2; institution definitions; federal annual-report provision.

A shared security council. Each public university system and Texas Southern University appoints a research-security officer. Systems overseeing medical schools may add an officer, and eligible private R1 institutions may opt in; those additional medical and private-institution members cannot vote. Texas A&M’s system representative is the initial chair. The council must meet quarterly, develop best practices and an optional model policy, establish a security-accreditation process and offer annual officer training. The coordinating board provides administrative support on request. Its overall security report is due December 1 of even-numbered years. That report is confidential; council work under its best-practices/training duties is also confidential unless the council approves dissemination to institutions. Separate restrictions bar council donations from specified federally restricted entities and certain foreign-government-owned or controlled sources. These council-donor restrictions use federal references distinct from Chapter 51B’s country definition. Final law, Section 1.

Gifts and investigations. An institution or employee generally cannot knowingly accept a direct or indirect gift from a covered foreign source of a foreign adversary beyond a minimal value to be set by rule. “Gift” means money or property. The final “foreign source” definition covers specified governments, entities, parties and their agents—not every foreign individual. A separate provision allows an institution to accept a larger gift from an individual citizen of a foreign adversary after council-based vetting; a gift over $25,000 additionally requires the institution chief executive’s approval and disclosure to the council. Those individual-citizen gifts have a disclosure exception, subject to other state or federal law. The law requires ethics-policy provisions, an employee reporting mechanism, and copies to the coordinating board of required federal foreign-gift/contract reports. It does not replace the federal disclosure rules. Institutions must investigate specified compliance-officer or sworn complaints; requested records are due within 10 business days unless a later date is agreed. Final law, Sections 51B.051–.052; existing federal disclosure law.

Academic partnerships and student organizations. Covered partnerships with foreign-adversary sources or controlled entities are prohibited if they constrain the institution’s freedom of contract, let the adversary direct/control/influence its curriculum or values, or promote an agenda detrimental to state or national safety or security. Institutions annually certify compliance or noncompliance with council partnership best practices; the council annually identifies institutions that did not certify compliance. Student organizations cannot accept adversary/agent gifts or agreements providing financial support, but may collect membership dues and fees. They must certify compliance annually. Violators lose institutional benefits and recognition or registration. Benefits include access to facilities, communications channels and generally available student-organization funding—not just cash payments. Final law, Sections 51B.101–.103; benefit and student-organization definitions.

Research screening. Screening applies before an offer of a research/support job or access to research or other sensitive data when the person is a foreign citizen without U.S. permanent residence, or has the specified institutional affiliation or at least one year of employment/training in a foreign adversary, excluding U.S.-agency employment/training. Institutions may screen others too. Background checks assess security risks; an active federal security clearance can support a waiver, and a council risk framework may allow low-risk waivers. Foreign citizens subject to screening must provide passport and latest nonimmigrant-visa-application copies, plus any council-required information; the visa copy may be returned or destroyed after extracting relevant information. A campus or system research-security office verifies submissions, completes the statutory requirements before hiring/access, and reports screening-based employment rejections to designated law enforcement. A substantial undisclosed educational, employment or research activity/publication/presentation blocks covered employment unless a department head or designee documents why it is being disregarded. Final law, Sections 51B.151–.153.

Travel, software and funding accountability. Institutions need risk-based employment-related foreign-travel approval and monitoring, with security-office preapproval for travel identified by that framework. Relevant adversary-travel/activity records must be kept at least three years, longer if another law requires, and specified travel is reported annually to the governing board. The council and coordinating board review education software and publish a prohibited list; institutions cannot enter or renew contracts for software on that list. Before spending a fiscal year’s appropriations, a governing board must certify prior-year compliance to the specified state authorities. Boards also testify between regular legislative sessions. State-auditor checks occur at least every four years; an institution found to have spent money in violation gets 180 days to cure. Failure to cure bars formula-funding increases, institutional enhancements and exceptional items in the following state fiscal biennium—not an automatic permanent loss of all funding. Final law, Sections 51B.201–.301.

Trade-secret theft. The existing crime includes knowingly stealing, copying or communicating a protected trade secret without the owner’s effective consent. HB127 raises it from a third-degree to a second-degree felony when the prosecution shows intent to benefit a foreign agent, government or instrumentality. This enhancement is not limited to universities or designated foreign adversaries. The ordinary prison range changes from 2–10 years to 2–20 years; either degree can also carry a fine up to $10,000. Individual sentencing can depend on other laws. Final law, Sections 3–4; offense definition; penalty ranges.

Different start dates matter. The general effective date is September 1, 2025; the criminal change applies only when no element occurred before that date. Student-organization rules begin with academic year 2025–26. Gift rules, partnership best-practice certification, screening and submission requirements in Sections 51B.051, .102(b), .151 and .152 begin with the academic year immediately following adoption of their council standards. The appropriation certification starts with funds for the fiscal year beginning September 1, 2026. Council appointments were required by October 1, 2025, and its first meeting by January 1, 2026. Those are legal deadlines, not a finding here that appointments, standards or meetings occurred on time. Final law, Sections 5–10.