Skip to main content

Politicians make promises on their stump — we watch and hold them accountable.

Help keep the record honest →Create an account
Bills/119th Congress · Senate

S. 4165

Introduced

Educational Visa Transparency Act of 2026

Sponsor
RTom Cotton· Arkansas
Introduced
March 24, 2026
Policy area
Immigration
Latest action
Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.March 24, 2026
[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4165 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>

119th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4165

To require all institutions of higher education receiving Federal 
assistance to regularly submit information to the Student and Exchange 
Visitor Information System regarding students, faculty, and 
administrators who are not United States citizens or lawful permanent 
residents.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

March 24, 2026

Mr. Cotton introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To require all institutions of higher education receiving Federal 
assistance to regularly submit information to the Student and Exchange 
Visitor Information System regarding students, faculty, and 
administrators who are not United States citizens or lawful permanent 
residents.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Educational Visa Transparency Act of 
2026''.

SEC. 2. MANDATORY REPORTING OF ALIENS AT INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER 
EDUCATION.

(a) In General.--Section 641 of the Illegal Immigration Reform and 
Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 (8 U.S.C. 1372) is amended--
(1) by redesignating subsection (h) as subsection (i); and
(2) by inserting after subsection (g) the following:
``(h) SEVIS Expansion.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 60 days after the date of 
the enactment of the Educational Visa Transparency Act of 2026, 
and not later than 30 days after each subsequent deadline for 
class registration for an academic term, each institution of 
higher education (as defined in section 101 of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001)) that receives funding 
or benefits from the Federal Government shall electronically 
submit to the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System a 
complete and accurate list of all students, faculty members, 
and administrators enrolled at or employed by such institution 
who are not United States citizens or lawful permanent 
residents, disaggregated by the type of visa held.
``(2) Access to information.--Officials of the Department 
of Education, the Department of Justice, the Department of 
Homeland Security, and the Department of State shall have 
access to the information submitted pursuant to paragraph (1) 
for the purpose of carrying out the duties of their respective 
offices.''.
<all>

Plain-language analysis

Not yet analyzed.

A plain-language breakdown — including any hidden or off-intent provisions and whether the bill was fast-tracked — is generated separately and reviewed before publishing. It will appear here once ready. Until then, the verbatim text above and the official source are the record.

StumpWatch is live, and the record is still growing. Many promises and positions aren’t tracked yet, and some features are still in beta. Add a sourced promise and help keep the record honest.

Help keep the record honest →