(B) development of standards for such data-
bases, including for curation, interoperability, 
and protection of privacy and security; and 
(C) support for the development of computa-
tional tools, including artificial intelligence 
tools, that can accelerate research and innova-
tion using such databases; and 
(D) an inventory and assessment of all Fed-
eral government omics databases to identify op-
portunities for consolidation and inform invest-
ment in such databases as critical infrastructure 
for the engineering biology research enterprise; 
(3) sustained support for the development, opti-
mization, and validation of novel tools and tech-
nologies to enable the dynamic study of molecular 
processes in situ, including through grants to inves-
tigators at institutions of higher education and other 
nonprofit research institutions, and through the 
Small Business Innovation Research Program and 
the Small Business Technology Transfer Program, as 
described in section 9 of the Small Business Act (15 
U.S.C. 638); 
(4) education and training of undergraduate 
and graduate students in engineering biology, in bio-
manufacturing, in bioprocess engineering, and in 
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areas of computational science applied to engineering 
biology; 
(5) activities to develop robust mechanisms for 
tracking and quantifying the outputs and economic 
benefits of engineering biology; and 
(6) activities to accelerate the translation and 
commercialization of new products, processes, and 
technologies by— 
(A) identifying precompetitive research op-
portunities; 
(B) facilitating public-private partnerships 
in engineering biology research and development; 
(C) connecting researchers, graduate stu-
dents, and postdoctoral fellows with entrepre-
neurship education and training opportunities; 
and 
(D) supporting proof of concept activities 
and the formation of startup companies includ-
ing through programs such as the Small Busi-
ness Innovation Research Program and the 
Small Business Technology Transfer Program. 
(c) EXPANDING PARTICIPATION.—The Initiative shall 
include, to the maximum extent practicable, outreach to 
primarily undergraduate and minority-serving institutions 
about Initiative opportunities, and shall encourage the de-
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velopment of research collaborations between research-inten-
sive universities and primarily undergraduate and minor-
ity-serving institutions. 
(d) ETHICAL, LEGAL, ENVIRONMENTAL, SAFETY, SE-
CURITY, AND SOCIETAL ISSUES.—Initiative activities shall 
take into account ethical, legal, environmental, safety, secu-
rity, and other appropriate societal issues by— 
(1) supporting research, including in the social 
sciences, and other activities addressing ethical, legal, 
environmental, and other appropriate societal issues 
related to engineering biology, including integrating 
research on such topics with the research and develop-
ment in engineering biology, and ensuring that the 
results of such research are widely disseminated, in-
cluding through interdisciplinary engineering biology 
research centers described in subsection (b)(1); 
(2) supporting research and other activities re-
lated to the safety and security implications of engi-
neering biology, including outreach to increase aware-
ness among federally-funded researchers at institu-
tions of higher education about potential safety and 
security implications of engineering biology research, 
as appropriate; 
(3) ensuring that input from Federal and non- 
Federal experts on the ethical, legal, environmental, 
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security, and other appropriate societal issues related 
to engineering biology is integrated into the Initia-
tive; and 
(4) ensuring, through the agencies and depart-
ments that participate in the Initiative, that public 
input and outreach are integrated into the Initiative 
by the convening of regular and ongoing public dis-
cussions through mechanisms such as workshops, con-
sensus conferences, and educational events, as appro-
priate. 
SEC. 5. INITIATIVE COORDINATION. 
(a) INTERAGENCY COMMITTEE.—The President, acting 
through the Office of Science and Technology Policy, shall 
designate an interagency committee to coordinate engineer-
ing biology, which shall be co-chaired by the Office of 
Science and Technology Policy, and include representatives 
from the National Science Foundation, the Department of 
Energy, the National Aeronautics and Space Administra-
tion, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, 
the Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of 
Agriculture, the National Institutes of Health, the Bureau 
of Economic Analysis, and any other agency that the Presi-
dent considers appropriate (in this section referred to as 
the ‘‘interagency committee’’). The Director of the Office of 
Science and Technology Policy shall select an additional 
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co-chairperson from among the members of the Interagency 
Committee. The Interagency Committee shall oversee the 
planning, management, and coordination of the Initiative. 
The Interagency Committee shall— 
(1) provide for interagency coordination of Fed-
eral engineering biology research, development, and 
other activities undertaken pursuant to the Initiative; 
(2) establish and periodically update goals and 
priorities for the Initiative; 
(3) develop, not later than 12 months after the 
date of enactment of this Act, and update every 3 
years, a strategic plan that— 
(A) guides the activities of the Initiative for 
purposes of meeting the goals and priorities es-
tablished under (and updated pursuant to) para-
graph (2); and 
(B) describes— 
(i) the Initiative’s support for long- 
term funding for interdisciplinary engineer-
ing biology research and development; 
(ii) the Initiative’s support for edu-
cation and public outreach activities; 
(iii) the Initiative’s support for re-
search and other activities on ethical, legal, 
environmental, safety, security, and other 
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