Title 10Armed ForcesRelease 119-73

§2611 Regional centers for security studies: acceptance of gifts and donations

Title 10 › Subtitle Subtitle A— - General Military Law › Part PART IV— - SERVICE, SUPPLY, AND PROPERTY › Chapter CHAPTER 155— - ACCEPTANCE OF GIFTS AND SERVICES › § 2611

Last updated Apr 6, 2026|Official source

Summary

The Secretary of Defense may accept gifts and donations for any of the six Department of Defense regional centers for security studies: the George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies; the Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies; the William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies; the Africa Center for Strategic Studies; the Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies; and the Ted Stevens Center for Arctic Security Studies. Gifts can come from state or local governments, foreign governments, foundations or charities, and private-sector sources in the United States or other countries. The Secretary cannot accept anything that would make the Department, its employees, or service members look biased or harm the honesty of any program. The Secretary must write rules to decide when a gift would cause that problem. Gifts go into the Department’s appropriations for the center they support, are merged with those funds, and stay available until spent. “Gift or donation” means money, materials (including research), property, or services (including lectures and faculty work).

Full Legal Text

Title 10, §2611

Armed Forces — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)(1)Subject to subsection (c), the Secretary of Defense may, on behalf of any Department of Defense regional center for security studies, any combination of such centers, or such centers generally, accept from any source specified in subsection (b) any gift or donation for purposes of defraying the costs or enhancing the operation of such a center, combination of centers, or centers generally, as the case may be.
(2)For purposes of this section, the Department of Defense regional centers for security studies are the following:
(A)The George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies.
(B)The Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies.
(C)The William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies.
(D)The Africa Center for Strategic Studies.
(E)The Near East South Asia Center for Strategic Studies.
(F)The Ted Stevens Center for Arctic Security Studies.
(b)The sources from which gifts and donations may be accepted under subsection (a) are the following:
(1)The government of a State or a political subdivision of a State.
(2)The government of a foreign country.
(3)A foundation or other charitable organization, including a foundation or charitable organization this is organized or operates under the laws of a foreign country.
(4)Any source in the private sector of the United States or a foreign country.
(c)The Secretary may not accept a gift or donation under subsection (a) if acceptance of the gift or donation would compromise or appear to compromise—
(1)the ability of the Department of Defense, any employee of the Department, or any member of the armed forces to carry out the responsibility or duty of the Department in a fair and objective manner; or
(2)the integrity of any program of the Department, or of any person involved in such a program.
(d)The Secretary shall prescribe written guidance setting forth the criteria to be used in determining whether the acceptance of a gift or donation would have a result described in subsection (c).
(e)Funds accepted by the Secretary under section (a) shall be credited to appropriations available to the Department of Defense for the regional center, combination of centers, or centers generally for which accepted. Funds so credited shall be merged with the appropriations to which credited and shall be available for the regional center, combination of centers, or centers generally, as the case may be, for the same purposes as the appropriations with which merged. Any funds accepted under this section shall remain available until expended.
(f)In this section, the term “gift or donation” means any gift or donation of funds, materials (including research materials), real or personal property, or services (including lecture services and faculty services).

Legislative History

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Amendments

2021—Subsec. (a)(2)(F). Pub. L. 117–81 added subpar. (F). 2014—Subsec. (a)(2)(B). Pub. L. 113–291 substituted “Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies” for “Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies”. 2013—Subsec. (a)(2)(C). Pub. L. 112–239 substituted “William J. Perry Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies” for “Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies”. 2006—Pub. L. 109–163 amended section catchline and text generally. Prior to amendment, text consisted of subsecs. (a) to (f) relating to acceptance of gifts and donations for the Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies. 2004—Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 108–375 amended directory language of Pub. L. 108–136, § 931(a)(1). See 2003 Amendment note below. 2003—Pub. L. 108–136, § 931(c), struck out “foreign” before “gifts” in section catchline. Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 108–136, § 931(b)(1)(A), struck out “Foreign” before “Gifts” in heading. Subsec. (a)(1). Pub. L. 108–136, § 931(a)(1), as amended by Pub. L. 108–375, substituted “gifts and donations from sources described in paragraph (2)” for “foreign gifts or donations”. Subsec. (a)(2), (3). Pub. L. 108–136, § 931(a)(2), (3), added par. (2) and redesignated former par. (2) as (3). Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 108–136, § 931(b)(1)(B), struck out “foreign” before “gift”. Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 108–136, § 931(b)(1)(A), (C), in heading, struck out “Foreign” before “Gift” and in text, struck out “foreign” after “section, a” and “from a foreign government, a foundation or other charitable organization in a foreign country, or an individual in a foreign country” before period at end. 2002—Subsec. (e). Pub. L. 107–314 struck out heading and text of subsec. (e). Text read as follows: “If the total amount of funds accepted under subsection (a) in any fiscal year exceeds $2,000,000, the Secretary shall notify Congress of the amount of those donations for that fiscal year. Any such notice shall list each of the contributors of such amounts and the amount of each contribution in that fiscal year.”

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 2004 Amendment Pub. L. 108–375, div. A, title X, § 1084(f), Oct. 28, 2004, 118 Stat. 2064, provided that the amendment made by section 1084(f)(2) is effective as of Nov. 24, 2003, and as if included in Pub. L. 108–136 as enacted.

Reference

Citations & Metadata

Citation

10 U.S.C. § 2611

Title 10Armed Forces

Last Updated

Apr 6, 2026

Release point: 119-73