The Department of Education issued the final Information Collection Request (ICR) regarding the reporting of foreign gifts to institutions of higher education.  The deadline to submit comments on this issue, which covers Section 117 of the Higher Education Act, is June 5.  

In the latest version of the supplemental documents, which describe the required elements of the Foreign Gift Report, it is evident that the Department has only made minor changes to the information on donors and has not addressed the concerns the higher education community detailed in its February comments. 

NAICU and the higher education community continue to have issues with the Department exceeding its statutory authority regarding the information it would seek from colleges and universities about foreign donors.  The community also continues to request a formal negotiated rulemaking process on Section 117 to ensure all stakeholders have the opportunity to voice their concerns.