WASHINGTON, D.C. — In a powerful display of multi-faith, bipartisan solidarity, The American Muslim & Multifaith Women’s Empowerment Council (AMMWEC) has joined 25 other faith and advocacy organizations in formally urging the United States Senate to pass the DETERRENT Act — legislation that would dramatically strengthen transparency requirements around foreign funding flowing into American colleges and universities.

The coalition submitted a joint letter to Congress on May 4, 2026, calling for swift Senate passage of H.R. 1048 / S. 1296, formally known as the Defending Education Transparency and Ending Rogue Regimes Engaging in Nefarious Transactions Act. The bill, which passed the House in March 2025 by a bipartisan vote of 241 to 169, now awaits action in the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee.

A Coalition Rooted in Shared American Values

The breadth of the coalition is itself a statement. From B’nai B’rith International to the Hindu American Foundation, from the American Islamic Forum for Democracy to StandWithUs — these 26 organizations span religious traditions, ethnic communities, and political perspectives. What unites them is a shared conviction: that American universities must not become conduits for foreign adversarial influence, and that students, faculty, and taxpayers deserve to know who is funding academic institutions.

The DETERRENT Act amends Section 117 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 — the existing law that governs foreign gift disclosures — and fundamentally rewrites the rules for how institutions report foreign money. Under current law, universities must disclose foreign gifts above $250,000, and the enforcement record has been widely criticized as weak. The new law would close those loopholes decisively.

What the DETERRENT Act Would Do

The legislation, developed with bipartisan input and supported by both House Republicans and 31 Democrats, introduces sweeping reforms to the way U.S. universities disclose financial relationships with foreign governments and entities. Key provisions include:

AMMWEC: Advocacy for America, Peace, and Global Dignity

For AMMWEC, the decision to sign the coalition letter reflects a broader mission. The organization has long championed the cause of Muslim and multifaith women as active participants in American civic life — not bystanders. Its advocacy work spans issues from women’s rights and religious freedom to national security and democratic accountability.

By joining this coalition, AMMWEC sends a clear signal: that protecting America from authoritarian foreign interference is not a partisan issue, nor an exclusively Western concern. It is a matter of universal human dignity. When authoritarian regimes like the Islamic Republic of Iran or the Chinese Communist Party fund academic programs, they do not merely buy influence — they export repression, stifle debate, and undermine the very academic freedoms that allow women like those AMMWEC serves to thrive.

The organization’s advocacy aligns with a global vision of peace built on transparency and the rule of law — a world where no regime can secretly fund the erosion of democratic values. As AMMWEC and its coalition partners have made clear, the passage of the DETERRENT Act is a step not just for America, but for all who believe in accountable governance and open societies.

The 26 Signatories: A Historic Multi-Faith Coalition

The following organizations co-signed the May 4, 2026 letter urging Congress to pass the DETERRENT Act. Together, they represent millions of Americans of Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Christian, and interfaith backgrounds united around national security and transparency:

Senate: The Ball Is Now in Your Court

Following the House passage of H.R. 1048, the bill was referred to the Senate HELP Committee, currently chaired by Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) — who is also a cosponsor of the Senate companion bill, S. 1296, introduced by Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC). The Senate version makes targeted modifications sought by higher education associations, including removing expanded endowment investment disclosure requirements and adding privacy protections for individual faculty — while keeping the core transparency and enforcement provisions intact for dealings with adversarial nations.

With 14 Senate cosponsors and strong public advocacy from a coalition spanning every major faith tradition in America, the bill now requires action. The coalition’s letter makes the urgency plain: the longer the Senate delays, the more time foreign adversaries have to funnel money into American campuses without accountability.

For organizations like AMMWEC, the message is both patriotic and universal: America’s universities must be places of free inquiry, not foreign influence operations. That vision — shared by Muslims, Jews, Hindus, and Christians alike — is the bedrock of this unprecedented coalition.