I 
118TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 8522 
To improve connections between the Department of Agriculture and national 
and homeland security agencies, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 23, 2024 
Mrs. BICE (for herself and Mr. KHANNA) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on Agriculture 
A BILL 
To improve connections between the Department of Agri-
culture and national and homeland security agencies, 
and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Agriculture and Na-
tional Security Act of 2024’’. 
SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS RELATING TO AGRICULTURE 
AND NATIONAL SECURITY. 
It is the sense of Congress that there are increasingly 
robust Federal activities to address homeland security 
vulnerabilities across the food and agriculture sector, in-
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cluding with regard to agriculture and food defense, crit-
ical infrastructure, emergency management, and cata-
strophic events, but additional efforts are needed to iden-
tify national security vulnerabilities related to food and ag-
riculture, particularly with regard to emerging tech-
nologies. 
SEC. 3. NATIONAL SECURITY. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—In recognition that food and agri-
culture are critical to the national security of the United 
States, the Secretary of Agriculture (referred to in this 
Act as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall prioritize national security 
in addition to homeland security in the Department of Ag-
riculture (referred to in this Act as the ‘‘Department’’), 
including by increasing the number of staff at the Depart-
ment with security clearances and access to classified sys-
tems and networks. 
(b) SENIOR ADVISOR FOR NATIONAL SECURITY.— 
(1) APPOINTMENT.—Not later than 180 days 
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec-
retary shall— 
(A) establish within the Office of the Sec-
retary the position of Senior Advisor for Na-
tional Security (referred to in this Act as the 
‘‘Senior Advisor’’); and 
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(B) appoint an individual to the position of 
Senior Advisor. 
(2) DUTIES.—The Senior Advisor shall, in co-
ordination with and complementary to the duties of 
the Office of Homeland Security of the Depart-
ment— 
(A) serve as the principal advisor to the 
Secretary on national security; 
(B) act as the primary liaison on behalf of 
the Department with the National Security 
Council and other Federal departments and 
agencies in activities relating to national secu-
rity; 
(C) coordinate national security activities 
across the Department, including to ensure that 
national security concerns are integrated into 
the homeland security activities of the Depart-
ment wherever appropriate; and 
(D) communicate with stakeholders to 
identify national security vulnerabilities and 
risk mitigation strategies relevant to food and 
agriculture. 
(c) INTERAGENCY COORDINATION.—Section 221(e) 
of the Department of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 
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1994 (7 U.S.C. 6922(e)) is amended by adding at the end 
the following: 
‘‘(3) DETAILEES AUTHORIZED.—The Secretary 
may provide detailees to, and accept and employ per-
sonnel detailed from, defense, national and homeland 
security, law enforcement, and intelligence agencies, 
with or without reimbursement, to improve informa-
tion sharing, vulnerability identification, and risk 
mitigation related to food and agriculture.’’. 
(d) BIENNIAL REPORTS.—Section 221 of the Depart-
ment of Agriculture Reorganization Act of 1994 (7 U.S.C. 
6922) is amended by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(f) BIENNIAL REPORTS.—Not later than 180 days 
after the date of enactment of this Act, and not less fre-
quently than once every 2 years thereafter, the Secretary 
shall submit to Congress and the National Security Coun-
cil a report that includes— 
‘‘(1) from the perspective of the Department, 
an assessment of any gaps or limitations in national 
security efforts related to food and agriculture in the 
United States, including— 
‘‘(A) influence of foreign state-owned en-
terprise; 
‘‘(B) control of and access to agricultural 
data; 
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‘‘(C) foreign acquisition of intellectual 
property, agricultural assets, and land; 
‘‘(D) agricultural input shortages and de-
pendence on foreign-sourced inputs; 
‘‘(E) supply chain and trade disruptions; 
‘‘(F) science and technology cooperation; 
‘‘(G) cybersecurity and artificial intel-
ligence; 
‘‘(H) unequal investments in research, de-
velopment, and scale-up; 
‘‘(I) incongruent regulatory policies; and 
‘‘(J) other vulnerabilities throughout the 
food and agriculture sector, particularly with 
regard to emerging technologies; 
‘‘(2) the actions taken by the Secretary to ad-
dress any gaps or limitations identified under para-
graph (1), including through interagency coordina-
tion, threat information sharing, and stakeholder 
outreach; 
‘‘(3) policy recommendations, including rec-
ommendations for executive actions and legislative 
proposals— 
‘‘(A) to reduce any gaps or limitations 
identified under paragraph (1); and 
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‘‘(B) 
to 
address 
any 
identified 
vulnerabilities with respect to the gaps or limi-
tations identified under paragraph (1); and 
‘‘(4) resources the Department requires to ad-
dress 
current 
and 
future 
national 
security 
vulnerabilities related to food and agriculture.’’. 
Æ 
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