Foreign Influence Transparency Act

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.

Congressional Research Service

Official summary

Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · Mar 21, 2018

Foreign Influence Transparency Act

This bill amends the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 to limit the exemption from foreign agent registration with the Department of Justice for a person engaging in activities in furtherance of religious, scholastic, academic, or scientific pursuits or of the fine arts to only those activities that do not promote a foreign government's political agenda.

The Higher Education Act of 1965 is amended to require institutions to report to the Department of Education a gift or contract from a foreign source whose annual value is $50,000 or more. The fair market value of in-kind-gifts is included in such limit. (Currently, a report is due if the annual value is $250,000 or more, considered alone or in combination with all other gifts from or contracts with a foreign source.)

A report shall: (1) include the contents of any such contracts, and (2) make such contents available for public disclosure.

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People & committees

Who introduced it

Sen. Rubio, Marco [R-FL] · R–FL

Committees

Foreign Relations Committee

1 cosponsorship records, including any withdrawals

Sen. Cotton, Tom [R-AR]

Legislative record

Actions

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Mar 21, 2018
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
Mar 21, 2018
Introduced in Senate

Primary sources

Bill text & related measures

Text links open the official source. We currently store references to these documents.

Introduced in Senate · Mar 21, 2018 Formatted Text PDF Formatted XML

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Source last updated: Aug 11, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.

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Analyze S.2583 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.

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Discuss S.2583, 115th Congress: Foreign Influence Transparency Act

Official record: https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/2583

Text version to examine: Introduced in Senate · 2018-03-21.

Official full text: https://www.congress.gov/115/bills/s2583/BILLS-115s2583is.htm

Imported record last updated by the source: 2025-08-11T16:35:28Z. Verify current status and distinguish any later version from the version above.

Read the official text before answering. If you cannot access it, say so and ask me to provide it; do not assume a link means you have read the document. Distinguish proposals from enacted law, cite sources, and separate facts, interpretation, and uncertain predictions. Include counterarguments even when using a particular perspective.

Analyze S.2583 as objectively as possible. Explain its main provisions, who would be affected, possible benefits and harms, implementation, exceptions, and uncertainties. Present the strongest arguments for and against it, and identify evidence needed to assess its public impact.

Fairness and public impact

Progressive lens

Examine S.2583 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.

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Discuss S.2583, 115th Congress: Foreign Influence Transparency Act

Official record: https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/2583

Text version to examine: Introduced in Senate · 2018-03-21.

Official full text: https://www.congress.gov/115/bills/s2583/BILLS-115s2583is.htm

Imported record last updated by the source: 2025-08-11T16:35:28Z. Verify current status and distinguish any later version from the version above.

Read the official text before answering. If you cannot access it, say so and ask me to provide it; do not assume a link means you have read the document. Distinguish proposals from enacted law, cite sources, and separate facts, interpretation, and uncertain predictions. Include counterarguments even when using a particular perspective.

Examine S.2583 through a progressive lens, focusing on fairness, access, economic inequality, and effects on vulnerable communities. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and distinguish stated goals from demonstrated outcomes.

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Conservative lens

Examine S.2583 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.

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Discuss S.2583, 115th Congress: Foreign Influence Transparency Act

Official record: https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/2583

Text version to examine: Introduced in Senate · 2018-03-21.

Official full text: https://www.congress.gov/115/bills/s2583/BILLS-115s2583is.htm

Imported record last updated by the source: 2025-08-11T16:35:28Z. Verify current status and distinguish any later version from the version above.

Read the official text before answering. If you cannot access it, say so and ask me to provide it; do not assume a link means you have read the document. Distinguish proposals from enacted law, cite sources, and separate facts, interpretation, and uncertain predictions. Include counterarguments even when using a particular perspective.

Examine S.2583 through a conservative lens, focusing on fiscal responsibility, institutional stability, federalism, and the scope of government. Explain potential benefits, costs, and unintended consequences. Consider the strongest counterarguments and any provisions that challenge this perspective.

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Examine S.2583 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.

View full prompt & sources

Discuss S.2583, 115th Congress: Foreign Influence Transparency Act

Official record: https://www.congress.gov/bill/115th-congress/senate-bill/2583

Text version to examine: Introduced in Senate · 2018-03-21.

Official full text: https://www.congress.gov/115/bills/s2583/BILLS-115s2583is.htm

Imported record last updated by the source: 2025-08-11T16:35:28Z. Verify current status and distinguish any later version from the version above.

Read the official text before answering. If you cannot access it, say so and ask me to provide it; do not assume a link means you have read the document. Distinguish proposals from enacted law, cite sources, and separate facts, interpretation, and uncertain predictions. Include counterarguments even when using a particular perspective.

Examine S.2583 through a civil-liberties and limited-government lens. Consider individual rights, privacy, voluntary choice, accountability, and government power. Explain tradeoffs, possible safeguards, and the strongest counterarguments without assuming the proposal is beneficial or harmful.