The House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce is investigating whether Columbia University is honoring its deal with the Trump administration, according to a letter sent to the university on Tuesday.
The letter, from committee chairman Brett Guthrie (R., Ky.), comes as Columbia is under fire for allegedly withholding information from a federal monitor, Bart Schwartz, who had been charged with overseeing compliance.
“Columbia ‘repeatedly failed to provide Schwartz with the policies relating to DEI and antisemitism for the vast majority of schools within Columbia,'” Guthrie wrote, quoting a Free Press report on the deal. “In its agreement with the U.S. government, Columbia was required to ‘ensure that the Resolution Monitor will have access to all Columbia documents and data related to the Agreement.'”
The letter also notes that Katrina Armstrong, the CEO of Columbia’s medical center and the university’s former president, could not recall a single incident of anti-Semitism when she was deposed by the Trump administration last year. Armstrong took a sabbatical after the Washington Free Beacon published a transcript of the deposition. She has since returned to her role at the medical center, which in 2024 hosted a speaker who had praised the “martyrdom” of a Hamas leader, Ahmad Jarrar, accused of orchestrating a rabbi’s murder.
“That sabbatical could have been an opportunity for … Dr. Armstrong to reflect on the way Columbia has addressed antisemitism on campus and ways to reform and improve Columbia’s record of compliance with federal civil rights laws,” the letter reads. “Questions remain as to whether Dr. Armstrong has become a better leader capable of helping oversee the implementation of the agreement.”
A university spokesman said Columbia was “reviewing Chairman Guthrie’s letter and will cooperate with the request.”
“Columbia is committed to maintaining a safe campus environment for all members of our community,” the school said. “Consistent with that commitment, Columbia has prioritized the recommendations of the University’s Task Force on Antisemitism, focusing on enhancing reporting mechanisms for bias incidents, enforcing campus protest policies to ensure non-discriminatory environments, and fostering classroom settings where Jewish students can engage in academic life without fear of harassment.”
The deal, which included a $200 million fine, restored more than $400 million in grant funding that the Trump administration paused last March. Though the deal forced Columbia to beef up its anti-discrimination bureaucracy, it did not include some of the more far-reaching reforms Jewish leaders had hoped for, prompting concerns about its long-term impact.
“The Committee is troubled by recent reports and allegations raising questions about Columbia University’s willingness to uphold its commitments to protect Jewish students, faculty, and staff,” Guthrie told the Free Beacon. “The fact that Columbia receives hundreds of millions of dollars from HHS and its subagencies, coupled with the serious concerns regarding its compliance with federal anti-discrimination laws, demonstrates that further oversight is needed.”
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