Sen. Chuck Grassley introduced legislation Tuesday to reform student visa laws.
The Student Visa Integrity Act will “help reduce fraud and abuse in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program,” according to the Iowa senator’s office.
The program, which has expanded since its inception in 1993, is in need of more safeguards in place, especially to keep a check on potential terrorists entering the country, Grassley said in a statement.
Changes prosed by the legislation include increased penalties for those caught committing fraud and a requirement to appropriately accredit schools that wish to be a part of the visa program.
The number of foreign students on these visas in U.S. colleges grew almost fivefold from 2001 to 2012, according to the Brookings Institution.
