Ohio State University to pay $2.1 million in settlement for Chinese-related research funding disclosure dispute

The U.S. Department of Justice announced on August 31 that the Ohio State University agreed to pay $2.1 million to address federal civil charges that the university failed to fully disclose some of its employees’ relationships with Chinese agencies and related support when applying for research funding from the National Aerospace Agency (NASA) and the National Science Foundation (NSF).U.S. Department of Justice Reconciliation StatementThe dispute involves projects funded between November 2012 and August 2023, located at Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio.

According to the Department of Justice, NASA and NSF requested the disclosure of foreign government support received by project leaders and co-leaders in their funding applications. The federal government alleged that since 2014, the annual school teacher activity report had documented some of the staff’s positions or partnerships with Chinese universities and state-owned research institutions, but that the information was not disclosed to NASA or NSF simultaneously. The Department of Justice also said that the school learned in 2019 that a NASA project leader was involved in China’s “Thousand People Program” and only notified the relevant federal agencies until 2023.

U.S. Justice Department's Reconciliation AgreementFurthermore, the relevant civil claims involve former Ohio State University professor C.K. Shum and other laboratory personnel, including Yu Zhang. The agreement records that the federal government believes that these persons have been in a position, cooperation or funding relationship with Chinese universities, state research institutions during their participation in NASA and NSF funded projects. The agreement also states that the settlement does not constitute an Ohio State University recognition of responsibility, and that the matter argued by the government is settled by a settlement and does not form a court decision on the entity’s responsibility.

NASA’s Office of Supervisors General issued a statement on the same day confirming the $2.1 million settlement and emphasizing the demands for disclosure of foreign relations in federal research funding.Announcement by NASA OIGA mutual certificate with the Department of Justice on the amount, the name of the school, and the core disputes involved in the investigation and processing includes the Civil Department of the Department of Justice, NASA’s Office of the Inspector General, NSF’s Office of the Inspector General, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

The Washington Post on August 31.Ohio State University spokesman Christopher Booker said the school had taken disciplinary measures against the relevant professors after the investigation, the professor was no longer employed at the school; the school also stopped spending on federal projects and refunded federal grants involved.

In terms of time, the disclosure gap called by the federal government did not occur in a single year: some school records date back to 2014, when schools were informed of the participation in the "Thousand People" plan in 2019, while federal agencies were not notified until 2023, and the NASA and NSF funding period involved extended from November 2012 to August 2023.

The public value of this event lies in the fact that it once again highlights the disclosure requirements of U.S. federal research funds for foreign funding, institutional duties and staff commitments, and the question of whether university-internal compliance information can be timely transmitted to funding institutions. For research cooperation in China, the real need to distinguish is verified specific disclosure obligations, government formal claims and ultimate legal responsibilities, can not equate the settlement itself to the court's judgment of violation or to the relationship involving China automatically equate to inappropriate acts.

The Ohio State University has agreed to pay US$2.1 million to resolve civil disputes; the US Department of Justice and NASA OIG announced the case on August 31; the Department of Justice clearly stated that the claims are still charges, and there is no responsibility to identify.