WASHINGTON, DC — Rep. John Katko (R-NY), lead Republican of the House Committee on Homeland Security, issued the following statement in response to the Biden Administration’s decision to withdraw a proposed rule requiring U.S. educational institutions to disclose their relationship with Confucius Institutes, entities in U.S. colleges and schools funded by China’s Ministry of Education:

“We’ve long had concerns about China’s undue influence in U.S. educational institutions. We remain more concerned with the CCP than ever before, and now is certainly not the time to roll back mechanisms to prevent CCP encroachment on our intellectual freedom and open academic environment for its own gain. The withdrawal of policies like this that were supported by career officials at the Department should be discussed with Congress and not quietly eliminated. This does not send the message of a transparent and unified bipartisan effort to hold China accountable. You can expect strong oversight from the House Committee on Homeland Security on this issue and others to confront this threat head on.”

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