Preventing Research Ownership Transfer to External Competitive Threats (PROTECT) Act of 2026

Sponsor: Troy E. Nehls (Republican-TX)

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Introduced

In Committee

Passed One Chamber

Passed Both Chambers

Signed into Law

Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.

Blocks U.S. universities from sharing research with certain foreign governments.

This bill would stop U.S. universities and their researchers from giving ownership of their work to certain foreign governments. It aims to protect American research from nations like Russia and China. If universities break these rules, they could face large fines and have any money they received taken away.

What Would Change

Today, no clear federal rules stop U.S. universities or their researchers from giving ownership of their work to foreign governments, unless other specific laws apply. This bill would ban these transfers to certain "covered foreign governments." It would also set up fines of up to $500,000 or $5,000,000, plus seizure of funds, for breaking these rules.

Key Provisions

Bans U.S. universities and their researchers from transferring ownership of their research to certain foreign governments.
Defines "prohibited nations" to include Russia, China, Iran, and others deemed a national security threat by the Secretary of State.
Sets civil fines up to $500,000 for each violation that does not endanger national security.
Sets civil fines up to $5,000,000 for each violation that endangers national security, especially for critical energy or defense research.
Allows the government to seize any money received by a university from a prohibited transaction.
Gives the Secretary of State the final say on which nations are prohibited and if a violation threatens national security.

View on Congress.gov

HR 7510 · 119th Congress · AI Summary by gemini-2.5-flash · 10/10

Preventing Research Ownership Transfer to External Competitive Threats (PROTECT) Act of 2026

What Would Change

Key Provisions

Lobbying Activity