I 
118TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 7062 
To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to periodically assess cybersecurity 
threats to, and vulnerabilities in, the agriculture and food critical infra-
structure sector and to provide recommendations to enhance their secu-
rity and resilience, to require the Secretary of Agriculture to conduct 
an annual cross-sector simulation exercise relating to a food-related emer-
gency or disruption, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 22, 2024 
Mr. FINSTAD (for himself, Ms. SLOTKIN, Mr. KELLY of Mississippi, Ms. 
TOKUDA, Mr. BACON, Ms. CARAVEO, Mrs. HINSON, Mr. SOTO, Mr. 
MOOLENAAR, Mr. JACKSON of Texas, Mr. AUSTIN SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. 
NUNN of Iowa, Mr. ALFORD, and Mr. SMUCKER) introduced the following 
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Agriculture 
A BILL 
To direct the Secretary of Agriculture to periodically assess 
cybersecurity threats to, and vulnerabilities in, the agri-
culture and food critical infrastructure sector and to 
provide recommendations to enhance their security and 
resilience, to require the Secretary of Agriculture to con-
duct an annual cross-sector simulation exercise relating 
to a food-related emergency or disruption, and for other 
purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Farm and Food Cyber-
security Act of 2024’’. 
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act: 
(1) AGRICULTURE AND FOOD CRITICAL INFRA-
STRUCTURE
SECTOR.—The term ‘‘agriculture and 
food critical infrastructure sector’’ means— 
(A) any activity relating to the production, 
processing, distribution, storage, transportation, 
consumption, or disposal of agricultural or food 
products; and 
(B) any entity involved in an activity de-
scribed in subparagraph (A), including a farm-
er, rancher, processor, manufacturer, dis-
tributor, retailer, consumer, and regulator. 
(2) 
CYBERSECURITY
THREAT; 
DEFENSIVE 
MEASURE; INCIDENT; SECURITY VULNERABILITY.— 
The terms ‘‘cybersecurity threat’’, ‘‘defensive meas-
ure’’, ‘‘incident’’, and ‘‘security vulnerability’’ have 
the meanings given those terms in section 2200 of 
the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 650). 
(3) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
the Secretary of Agriculture. 
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SEC. 3. ASSESSMENT OF CYBERSECURITY THREATS AND 
SECURITY VULNERABILITIES IN THE AGRI-
CULTURE AND FOOD CRITICAL INFRASTRUC-
TURE SECTOR. 
(a) STUDY.—The Secretary shall conduct a study, on 
a biennial basis, on the cybersecurity threats to, and secu-
rity vulnerabilities in, the agriculture and food critical in-
frastructure sector, including— 
(1) the nature and extent of cyberattacks and 
incidents that affect the agriculture and food critical 
infrastructure sector; 
(2) the potential impacts of a cyberattack or in-
cident on the safety, security, and availability of 
food products, as well as on the economy, public 
health, and national security of the United States; 
(3) the current capability and readiness of the 
Federal Government, State and local governments, 
and private sector entities to prevent, detect, re-
spond to, and recover from cyberattacks and inci-
dents described in paragraph (2); 
(4) the existing policies, standards, guidelines, 
best practices, and initiatives applicable to the agri-
culture and food critical infrastructure sector to en-
hance defensive measures in that sector; 
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(5) the gaps, challenges, barriers, or opportuni-
ties for improving defensive measures in the agri-
culture and food critical infrastructure sector; and 
(6) any recommendations for Federal legislative 
or administrative actions to address the cybersecu-
rity threats to, and security vulnerabilities in, the 
agriculture and food critical infrastructure sector. 
(b) BIENNIAL REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after 
the date of enactment of this Act, and every 2 years there-
after, the Secretary shall submit a report on each study 
conducted under subsection (a) to— 
(1) the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, 
and Forestry of the Senate; 
(2) the Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs of the Senate; 
(3) the Committee on Agriculture of the House 
of Representatives; and 
(4) the Committee on Homeland Security of the 
House of Representatives. 
SEC. 4. FOOD SECURITY AND CYBER RESILIENCE SIMULA-
TION EXERCISE. 
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Secretary, in coordina-
tion with the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Sec-
retary of Health and Human Services, the Director of Na-
tional Intelligence, and the heads of other relevant Federal 
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agencies, shall conduct, over a 5-year period, an annual 
cross-sector crisis simulation exercise relating to a food- 
related emergency or disruption (referred to in this section 
as an ‘‘exercise’’). 
(b) PURPOSES.—The purposes of each exercise are— 
(1) to assess the preparedness and response ca-
pabilities of Federal, State, Tribal, local, and terri-
torial governments and private sector entities in the 
event of a food-related emergency or disruption; 
(2) 
to 
identify 
and 
address 
gaps 
and 
vulnerabilities in the food supply chain and critical 
infrastructure; 
(3) to enhance coordination and information 
sharing among stakeholders involved in food produc-
tion, processing, distribution, and consumption; 
(4) to evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency 
of existing policies, programs, and resources relating 
to food security and resilience; 
(5) to develop and disseminate best practices 
and recommendations for improving food security 
and resilience; and 
(6) to identify key stakeholders and categories 
that were missing from the exercise to ensure the in-
clusion of those stakeholders and categories in fu-
ture exercises. 
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(c) DESIGN.—Each exercise shall— 
(1) involve a realistic and plausible scenario 
that simulates a food-related emergency or disrup-
tion affecting multiple sectors and jurisdictions; 
(2) incorporate input from experts and stake-
holders from various disciplines and sectors, includ-
ing agriculture, public health, nutrition, emergency 
management, transportation, energy, water, commu-
nications, related equipment suppliers and manufac-
turers, and cybersecurity, including related academia 
and private sector information security researchers 
and practitioners; 
(3) use a variety of methods and tools, such as 
tabletop exercises, workshops, seminars, games, 
drills, or full-scale exercises; and 
(4) include participants from Federal, State, 
Tribal, local, and territorial governments and private 
sector entities that have roles and responsibilities re-
lating to food security and resilience. 
(d) FEEDBACK; REPORT.—After each exercise, the 
Secretary, in consultation with the heads of the Federal 
agencies described in subsection (a), shall— 
(1) provide feedback to, and an evaluation of, 
the participants in that exercise on their perform-
ance and outcomes; and 
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(2) produce, and submit to Congress, a report 
that summarizes, with respect to that exercise, the 
findings of that exercise, lessons learned from that 
exercise, and recommendations to enhance the cyber-
security and resilience of the agriculture and food 
critical infrastructure sector. 
(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 
authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 
$1,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2024 through 2028. 
Æ 
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