Bean Reintroduces Bill to Counter Malicious Foreign Influence in American Schools

Representative Aaron Bean (R-FL) is reintroducing legislation to counter malicious foreign influence in America's education system through funding.

Named the Transparency in Reporting of Adversarial Contributions to Education (TRACE) Act and introduced initially last June, Rep. Bean's bill would require schools to notify parents of how and where foreign funding affects their child's educational curriculum.

In addition to requiring greater transparency on who is funding educational material, the TRACE Act empowers parents by requiring schools to disclose if any staff are compensated by other countries or "foreign entities of concern."

In his press release, Rep. Bean said, "American schools are for education, not espionage. We cannot allow our students—the future of our great nation—to be corrupted by foreign adversaries who are systematically and aggressively attempting to influence our nation's K-12 schools."

Additionally, the Florida Congressman accused school funds accrued via foreign sources as a "Trojan Horse" that needed to be cracked open before being wheeled into the gates.

"Yet this is what happens when our institutions of learning accept the trojan horse of foreign funding. I am proud to reintroduce this bill to solidify the rights of parents to know how foreign influence may be impacting their child's classroom and to deter the ability of foreign nations to reach America's youth," Bean continued.

The Floridian previously discussed education with Bean in December, telling us that he wanted education to return to the states since federal control is another factor creating undesirable effects on students.

"Some people like the control that the Department [of Education] gives because they are able to say, 'If you play along with what we want, everything has strings attached, and if you play along with the deep state, then we will reward you with extra money.' So again if we are totally honest, the role [of education] would be much better run at the state level, we will have that debate," Bean said in comments to The Floridian.