American universities reported more than $5.2 billion in foreign gifts and contracts during 2025 alone. Now a federal judge has temporarily stopped the Education Department from telling the public who some of those foreign donors and contracting parties are.
U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan issued a temporary restraining order Thursday blocking publication of names and identifying information supplied by members of the Association of American Universities.
The order runs through October 29 unless the court extends it.
From the Association of American Universities:
On October 1, after a hearing, Judge Tanya S. Chutkan of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) barring the government from publishing the names or other identifying information of foreign donors and contract counterparties reported by AAU member institutions under Section 117. The judge found that AAU is likely to succeed on its claim that ED's decision to publish this information, after six years of written assurances that it would not, is arbitrary and capricious. The TRO does not cover the 92 foreign entities ED already published on July 15, 2026.
The TRO took effect immediately and will expire on October 29, 2026, unless extended by the court. The government's response to AAU's motion for a preliminary injunction is due October 13, and AAU's reply is due October 20.
The dispute sounds simple until you read the law. Section 117 of the Higher Education Act requires colleges receiving federal financial assistance to report foreign gifts and contracts worth $250,000 or more during a calendar year, and Congress made those disclosure reports public records for inspection.
Congress, however, didn't expressly require every private foreign donor's name to appear in those public reports. For gifts or contracts from nongovernment foreign sources, the statute requires the aggregate dollar amount and country involved. Foreign governments are reported separately, while restricted or conditional gifts require additional information.
The Education Department's reporting system collected more information, including foreign-source identities. Universities say they supplied those details after receiving written assurances for six years that the identities would remain confidential. The department later announced plans to publish names from prior reporting cycles beginning October 2.
The universities sued on October 1, arguing that the department changed the rules after schools and donors had relied on those confidential assurances. Their claims include violations of the Administrative Procedure Act, First Amendment, Trade Security Act, and federal records law. Chutkan concluded the association was likely to succeed in its claim that the publication decision, after those earlier assurances, was arbitrary and capricious.
Her ruling is narrow. Universities must still report qualifying foreign money, and existing disclosure requirements remain in place.
From the Association of American Universities:
October 1, 2026: On October 1, after a hearing, Judge Tanya S. Chutkan of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) barring the government from publishing the names or other identifying information of foreign donors and contract counterparties reported by AAU member institutions under Section 117. The judge found that AAU is likely to succeed on its claim that ED's decision to publish this information, after six years of written assurances that it would not, is arbitrary and capricious. The TRO does not cover the 92 foreign entities ED already published on July 15, 2026.
The TRO took effect immediately and will expire on October 29, 2026, unless extended by the court. The government's response to AAU's motion for a preliminary injunction is due October 13, and AAU's reply is due October 20.
The order also doesn't cover 92 foreign entities whose identities the department already published in July. The government's response to the request for a longer injunction is due October 13.
The scale behind the legal fight deserves attention. American universities reported more than 8,300 foreign transactions worth over $5.2 billion for 2025. Reported foreign funding since 1986 has reached $67.6 billion, with the Education Department saying the majority of that total has been disclosed since 2019.
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