Agriculture and National Security Act

Bill Number

S. 2694

Origin Chamber

Senate

Congress

119th Congress, Session 1

Policy Area

Agriculture and Food

Status

Introduced

Latest Action

2025-09-03: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.

Last Updated

2025-09-22T19:26:24Z

AI-Generated Summary

Purpose

The Agriculture and National Security Act aims to strengthen the integration of food and agriculture into U.S. national security efforts by enhancing coordination between the Department of Agriculture (USDA) and other federal agencies focused on defense, homeland security, law enforcement, and intelligence. It emphasizes identifying and addressing vulnerabilities in the food and agriculture sector, particularly those involving emerging technologies like biotechnology, artificial intelligence (AI), drones, cybersecurity, and supply chain issues.

Key Provisions

• Sense of Congress: Affirms that food and agriculture are vital to national security and calls for increased focus on vulnerabilities, especially from new technologies.
• Establishment of Assistant Secretary Position:
• Creates a new role, Assistant Secretary of Agriculture for National Security, within the USDA Secretary's office, to be filled within 180 days of enactment.
• Duties include advising the USDA Secretary on national security matters, serving as the main liaison to the National Security Council (NSC) and other agencies, coordinating security activities across USDA (e.g., homeland security office, counterintelligence efforts, foreign investment disclosures under the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act of 1978, and reviews of foreign acquisitions under Section 721 of the Defense Production Act of 1950), and working with stakeholders to pinpoint risks and mitigation strategies in food and agriculture.
• Interagency Coordination:
• Allows USDA to temporarily assign (or "detail") staff to or from defense, national/homeland security, law enforcement, and intelligence agencies, with or without cost reimbursement, to improve information sharing, identify vulnerabilities, and develop risk mitigation for food and agriculture.
• Biennial Reporting Requirements:
• Mandates USDA to submit reports to Congress and the NSC every two years (starting 180 days after enactment), covering:
• Assessments of security gaps in food and agriculture, such as foreign state influence, control over agricultural data, foreign purchases of intellectual property/assets/land, input shortages from foreign sources, supply chain/trade disruptions, science/technology cooperation, cybersecurity/AI risks, unequal research investments, inconsistent regulations, and other emerging technology vulnerabilities.
• Actions taken by USDA to address these gaps, including interagency collaboration, threat sharing, and stakeholder engagement.
• Policy recommendations for executive or legislative actions to close gaps and mitigate risks.
• Resource needs, such as additional personnel or access to secure systems, to handle current and future vulnerabilities.
• Conforming Amendments: Updates the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 to authorize the new position, duties, detailing authority, and reporting.

Significant Changes to Existing Law

• Amends the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 6918 and related sections) to formally authorize and define the new Assistant Secretary role, including specific national security duties not previously outlined.
• Expands interagency detailing provisions (Section 221(e)) to explicitly include food and agriculture security, enabling easier personnel exchanges without prior reimbursement requirements in some cases.
• Adds mandatory biennial reporting (new Section 221(f)) to ensure ongoing oversight, which did not exist before.
• Includes a technical update to grant USDA explicit authority to implement these changes (Section 296(b)).

Potential Impacts

• On Government Agencies: Enhances USDA's national security capabilities through better internal coordination and external partnerships, potentially leading to more efficient threat detection and response in agriculture. Other agencies (e.g., Department of Homeland Security, Department of Defense, intelligence community) may see increased collaboration, but this could strain resources if detailing becomes frequent. Congress and the NSC will receive regular updates, informing policy decisions.
• On Citizens: Improves protection of the U.S. food supply against disruptions (e.g., cyber threats or foreign interference), potentially benefiting farmers, consumers, and rural communities by reducing risks to food security and economic stability. However, it may indirectly affect agricultural data privacy or foreign investment scrutiny.
• On International Relations: Could heighten scrutiny of foreign investments in U.S. agriculture (e.g., land or tech acquisitions), potentially straining ties with countries involved in such activities. It promotes risk mitigation in global supply chains, which might influence trade policies or technology cooperation agreements.

Main Stakeholders Affected

• USDA and Federal Agencies: Primary implementers, including the new Assistant Secretary, Office of Homeland Security, and counterintelligence units; also impacts NSC, defense/intelligence agencies through detailing and coordination.
• Agricultural Sector: Farmers, agribusinesses, biotech firms, and supply chain participants, who may engage in vulnerability assessments and benefit from risk mitigation but face potential new reporting or regulatory oversight.
• Congress and Policymakers: Recipients of reports, influencing future legislation or executive actions on ag security.
• Foreign Entities: State-owned enterprises or investors from abroad, subject to increased disclosure and review under existing laws like the Defense Production Act.

Notable Legal, Constitutional, or Political Implications

• Legal: Builds on existing frameworks (e.g., Defense Production Act) without creating new enforcement powers, but the detailing provision could raise minor administrative law questions about reimbursement and personnel protections. The biennial reports ensure accountability under congressional oversight.
• Constitutional: Aligns with Congress's authority over national security and agriculture (Article I, Section 8), promoting interagency cooperation without infringing on executive branch functions.
• Political: Bipartisan introduction (by Senators Padilla and Young) signals broad support for viewing agriculture as a security priority; may spur debates on resource allocation for emerging tech risks, but avoids controversial mandates like new regulations, focusing instead on coordination and assessment.

This summary was generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the official source document for the authoritative text.

Sponsor

Sen. Padilla, Alex [D-CA]

Cosponsors (1)

Sen. Young, Todd [R-IN]

Recent Actions

• 2025-09-03: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
• 2025-09-03: Introduced in Senate

Bill Versions

• Agriculture and National Security Act — issued 2025-09-03 — PDF (7 pages)