,,ii #aahth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #eedd ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,december #ag 7legislative day1 ,december #af71 #bjbd,mr4 ,sullivan 7for himself and ,mr4 ,ricketts7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on the ,judiciary ,a ,,bill ,to reduce the number of student visas available to nationals of the ,people's ,republic of ,china until ,china removes certain restrictions on ,united ,states students pursuing postsecondary educational opportunities in ,china and to restrict the types of postsecondary study available to ,chinese nationals in the ,united ,states to include sensitive topics with potential dual-use military application4 #a4 ,short titles ,this ,act may be cited as the ,promoting ,reciprocity on ,chinese ,students ,act or the ,,prc ,students ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,american students in the ,people's ,republic of ,china 7referred in this section as the ,,prc7 face internal travel restrictions1 censorship1 and a growing threat of arrest or detention via exit bans and an expanded espionage law4 7#b7 ,these restrictions and other threats have caused a cooling effect on the matriculation of ,united ,states students in ,chinese universities1 which has been compounded by anti-western sentiment4 7#c7 ,there are currently fewer than #a1jjj ,united ,states students studying in ,china1 while there are an estimated #bij1jjj ,chinese students studying in the ,united ,states4 7#d7 ,the ,,prc has-- 7,a7 heightened surveillance and political controls on university campuses2 7,b7 intensified internet censorship2 7,c7 fortified its firewall1 which blocks ,google1 ,facebook1 and other ,united ,states social media platforms2 and 7,d7 subjected students to biometric scanning to enter universities4 7#e7 ,additional restrictions imposed by the ,,prc include-- 7,a7 state censorship on topics deemed sensitive2 7,b7 an ongoing campaign against western values2 7,c7 democratic backsliding2 7,d7 strict data protection laws2 and 7,e7 restrictive access to state archives4 7#f7 ,foreign students inside the ,,prc are required to register with local authorities when undertaking internal travel and certain areas in ,china1 such as ,xinjiang and ,tibet1 cannot be accessed by foreign students without required travel permits that must be obtained through an internal government-registered operator4 7#g7 ,american students are explicitly restricted from attending-- 7,a7 the #b universities that are directly administered by the ,,prc's ,central ,military ,commission1 the ,national ,defense ,university and the ,national ,university of ,defense ,technology2 7,b7 any of the ,,prc's military academies2 and 7,c7 any other institution of higher education that does not appear on the ,china ,scholarship ,council's list of approved universities4 7#h7 ,the ,,prc has used exit bans to stop some foreigners from leaving the country and has engaged in arbitrary detentions4 7#i7 ,the ,counterespionage ,law of the ,,prc1 which was passed by the ,national ,people's ,congress on ,april #bf1 #bjbc1 expands the definition of espionage from covering state secrets and intelligence to any documents1 data1 materials or items related to national security1 without specifying the parameters for how such terms are defined4 ,the offenses previously covered by privacy provisions under the ,criminal ,law of the ,,prc had carried a maximum penalty of #c years imprisonment1 but were not often enforced4 ,under the new law1 such offenses can result in imprisonment for life or the death penalty4 7#aj7 ,chinese students in the ,united ,states and in other western countries have been accused of espionage and intelligence collection to bolster the ,,prc's military base as part of the ,chinese ,communist ,party's ,military-,civil ,fusion ,policy4 7#aa7 ,in ,january #bjbd1 a ,chinese student studying at the ,university of ,minnesota crashed a drone in a tree near ,langley ,air ,force base in ,hampton1 ,virginia4 ,after flying to ,california the following day1 the student was arrested and charged with espionage4 7#ab7 ,in ,september #bjbd1 ,united ,states prosecutors alleged that #e ,chinese ,university of ,michigan graduates1 who claimed to be stargazing1 were taking photos in the middle of the night of military vehicles at ,camp ,grayling during a ,united ,states ,national ,guard training exercise that included ,taiwanese military personnel4 7#ac7 ,according to the ,select ,committee on the ,chinese ,communist ,party of the ,house of ,representatives1 the ,,prc operates nearly #ejj foreign talent programs whose members are contractually obligated to return to the ,,prc with secrets and expertise gained in foreign universities and labs in order to drive military modernization and other technological development in the ,,prc4 7#ad7 ,on ,october #ad1 #bjbd1 the ,wall ,street ,journal reported that1 according to ,european security officials-- 7,a7 ,chinese students and guest scientists have become a prime conduit for ,chinese espionage in the ,west2 7,b7 ,chinese spies masquerading as researchers have recently grown better at hiding their tracks2 7,c7 some ,chinese students enroll in language or literature courses and later switch to quantum computing or other sensitive areas2 and 7,d7 the ,,prc's intelligence-gathering and security operations might comprise up to #fjj1jjj people4 7#ae7 ,according to the ,australian ,strategic ,policy ,institute1 the ,people's ,liberation ,army has sponsored more than #b1ejj military scientists and engineers to study abroad during the most recent #ae years in order to acquire technology needed to modernize the ,,prc's military4 #c4 ,purpose ,the purpose of this ,act is to introduce reciprocity into the ,sino-,american relationship by-- 7#a7 reducing the number of ,chinese students in the ,united ,states to match the number of ,american students in the ,people's ,republic of ,china as long as ,,prc restrictions against ,united ,states students persist2 and 7#b7 restricting the types of postsecondary study available to ,chinese nationals in the ,united ,states to include sensitive topics with potential dual-use military application4 #d4 ,gradual reduction of ,chinese students in the ,united ,states ,section #bad7m7 of the ,immigration and ,nationality ,act 7#h ,u4,s4,c4 #aahd7m77 is amended by adding at the end the following3 7#c7 7,a7 ,except as provided in subparagraph 7,c71 the ,secretary of ,state1 beginning in fiscal year #bjbe1 in collaboration with the ,secretary of ,homeland ,security1 shall annually reduce by #ej1jjj the number of nationals of the ,people's ,republic of ,china who are authorized to reside in the ,united ,states as nonimmigrants under subparagraph 7,f77i71 7,j77i71 or 7,m77i7 of section #aja7;a77#ae7 compared to the number of such aliens so authorized during the previous fiscal year1 until the number of such aliens is equal to the number of ,united ,states citizens who are enrolled in a postsecondary course of study in the ,people's ,republic of ,china4 7,b7 ,nationals of the ,people's ,republic of ,china who are admitted to the ,united ,states as nonimmigrants under section #aja7;a77#ae77;,f77i7 may not be enrolled at a ,united ,states institution of higher education in any postsecondary program involving a sensitive topic with potential dual-use military application1 including-- 7i7 naval architecture2 7ii7 marine engineering2 7iii7 aircraft engineering2 7iv7 artificial intelligence2 7v7 quantum computing2 and 7vi7 any other area of study determined by the ,secretary of ,defense to involve a sensitive topic with potential dual-use military application4 7,c7 7i7 ,the ,secretary of ,state shall submit a report to ,congress as soon as the ,secretary determines that the ,government of the ,people's ,republic of ,china-- 7,i7 has lifted internal travel restrictions relating to-- 7aa7 the requirement that ,united ,states students register with local authorities when traveling within ,china2 and 7bb7 the requirement that ,united ,states students obtain internal travel permits and guided tours to visit certain provinces within ,china1 such as ,xinjiang and ,tibet2 7,,ii7 is granting ,united ,states students within ,china access to the internet and ,chinese research databases that is commensurate with the access available to the internet and ,united ,states research databases by ,chinese students in the ,united ,states2 7,,iii7 has discontinued threats of exit bans and the arbitrary detention of ,united ,states students2 and 7,,iv7 is granting ,united ,states students access to all ,chinese universities and institutions of higher education4 7ii7 ,beginning on the first day of the first fiscal year beginning after the date on which the report required under clause 7i7 is submitted to ,congress1 the restriction on the admittance of ,chinese students described in subparagraph 7,a7 shall cease to have any force or effect4 4