S.Amdt. 2462

1. Adds SEC. 1237. VIETNAM EDUCATION FOUNDATION at the end of subtitle C of title XII

   Adds a section

   In S. 1197 · Placed on Calendar Senate

   (2) the Committee on Armed Services and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives.

   Inserted: SEC. 1237. VIETNAM EDUCATION FOUNDATION.

   Inserted: (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:

   Inserted: (1) The Secretary of Defense has called for more high-level exchanges and enhanced defense cooperation between the United States and Vietnam.

   Inserted: (2) Vietnam plays a major role in the President's strategic priority to rebalance United States policies toward Asia (popularly known as the "Asia pivot").

   Inserted: (3) The Department of Defense is increasing its United States force posture in Asia to achieve more geographical distribution, operational resilience, and politically sustainability.

   Inserted: (4) The Secretary of Defense and the Minister of Defense of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam have agreed to develop cooperation in the following 5 areas:

   Inserted: (A) High-level dialogues.

   Inserted: (B) Maritime security.

   Inserted: (C) Search and rescue operations.

   Inserted: (D) Peacekeeping operations.

   Inserted: (E) Humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

   Inserted: (5) The Secretary of Defense has emphasized that enhanced defense cooperation must be accompanied by reform and liberalization in other sectors.

   Show 19 more inserted paragraphsShow less

   Inserted: (b) Grants Authorized.--

   Inserted: (1) Establishment of higher education institution in vietnam.--In order to support Vietnam's socioeconomic transition and promote the values of intellectual freedom and open enquiry, the Secretary of State may award 1 or more grants to not-for-profit organizations engaged in promoting institutional innovation in Vietnamese higher education to establish an independent, not-for-profit, higher education institution in Vietnam.

   Inserted: (2) Use of funds.--Grant funds awarded under this subsection shall be used to support the establishment of an independent, not-for-profit academic institution to be built in Vietnam, which shall--

   Inserted: (A) achieve standards comparable to those required for accreditation in the United States;

   Inserted: (B) offer graduate and undergraduate level teaching and research programs in a broad range of fields, including public policy, management, and engineering; and

   Inserted: (C) establish a policy of academic freedom and prohibit the censorship of dissenting or critical views.

   Inserted: (3) Application.--Eligible not-for-profit organizations desiring a grant under this subsection shall submit an application to the Secretary of State at such time, in such manner, and accompanied by such information as the Secretary may reasonably require.

   Inserted: (4) Report on grantee application criteria.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall submit the criteria established for grantee applications, including commitments to ensure academic freedom, to the appropriate congressional committees.

   Inserted: (5) Funding.--The Secretary of State may use amounts from the Vietnam Debt Repayment Fund made available under section 207(c) of the Vietnam Education Foundation Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 2452 note) for grants authorized under this subsection.

   Inserted: (6) Annual report.--The Secretary of State shall submit an annual report to the appropriate congressional committees on the activities carried out under this subsection during the most recent fiscal year that includes--

   Inserted: (A) a list of grantees and educational proposals;

   Inserted: (B) an assessment of the grantees' ability to meet comparable United States academic standards; and

   Inserted: (C) an assessment of the grantees' efforts and commitment to academic freedom in Vietnam.

   Inserted: (c) Transfer of Functions and Assets.--All functions and assets of the Vietnam Education Foundation, as of the day before the date of the enactment of this Act, are transferred to the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the Department of State.

   Inserted: (d) Vietnam Debt Repayment Fund.--Section 207(c) of the Vietnam Education Foundation Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 2452 note) is amended to read as follows:

   Inserted: "(c) Availability of Funds.--

   Inserted: "(1) Amounts transferred to the foundation.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), for each of the fiscal years 2014 through 2018, $5,000,000 of the amounts deposited into the Fund (or accrued interest) shall be transferred to the Foundation to carry out the fellowship program described in section 206.

   Inserted: "(2) Amounts allotted for grants to establish an independent, not-for-profit, higher education institution in vietnam.--Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the Secretary of State may expend any amounts deposited into the Fund (or accrued interest) to carry out the grant program established under section 1237(b) of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2014, to support the establishment of an independent, not-for-profit academic institution in Vietnam offering graduate and undergraduate level programs in a broad range of fields, including public policy, management, and engineering.

   Inserted: "(3) Disposition of excess funds.--For each of the fiscal years 2014 through 2018, the Secretary of the Treasury shall deposit all amounts in the Fund in excess of the amounts transferred or expended under paragraphs (1) and (2) for such year as miscellaneous receipts into the General Fund of the Treasury of the United States.".

   Original wording

   At the end of subtitle C of title XII, add the following:

Read automatically from the Congressional Record. Check the original before relying on it.

As printed