Texas House bill by Rep. Wilson regulates foreign involvement in higher education institutions

Passed bill authored by State Rep. Terry Wilson seeks to protect Texas public higher education institutions from foreign adversaries by regulating foreign gifts, contracts, and partnerships and enhancing research integrity measures, according to the Texas Legislature website.

In the House, 52 Democrats and 78 Republicans voted in favor of the bill, while two Democrats and two Republicans opposed it.

Meanwhile, in the Senate, nine Democrats and 20 Republicans voted in favor, while two Democrats voted against it.

Terry Wilson introduced the bill in the Texas House on Thursday, March 13, during the 89th regular legislative session.

Wilson graduated from Texas A&M University in 1990 with a BS.

Wilson, a Republican, was elected to the Texas State House in 2017 to represent the state’s 20th House district, replacing previous state representative Marsha Farney.

According to the Texas Legislature, the bill’s official text was summarized as follows: ‘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 following is our breakdown, based on the actual bill text, and may include interpretation to clarify its provisions.

In essence, this bill aims to protect public institutions of higher education in Texas from foreign adversaries by regulating gifts, contracts, and partnerships with foreign sources from designated adversaries. The bill requires these institutions to report and seek approval from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board for any gift or contract involving a foreign adversary. It mandates the establishment of a research integrity office for screening foreign researchers and implementing international travel monitoring programs. Additionally, the bill prohibits student associations from engaging with foreign adversaries and mandates an audit on the implementation of these measures by March 31, 2026. Effective Sept. 1, 2025, the bill also amends the Penal Code to increase penalties for theft of trade secrets intended to benefit foreign agents or governments.

The bill was co-authored by Rep. Brooks Landgraf (Republican – District 81), Rep. Terri Leo-Wilson (Republican – District 23), and Rep. Janie Lopez (Republican – District 37), along with 32 other authors.

The bill received its final legislative approval on Friday, May 30, and was signed into law by Gov. Greg Abbott on Friday, June 20.

Bills in Texas go through a multi-step legislative process, including committee review, debates, and votes in both chambers before reaching a final decision. Each session, there are typically thousands of bills introduced, but only a portion successfully navigate the process to become law.

You can read more about the bills and other measures here.