Agriculture and National Security Act of 2024

Summary

Mandates the Secretary of Agriculture to prioritize national security alongside homeland security within the Department of Agriculture, including increasing staff with security clearances.

Establishes the position of Senior Advisor for National Security to advise the Secretary and coordinate with the National Security Council on national security matters related to food and agriculture.

Authorizes the Secretary to exchange personnel with defense, national security, law enforcement, and intelligence agencies to improve information sharing and risk mitigation.

Requires biennial reports to Congress and the National Security Council assessing national security gaps in the food and agriculture sector, including cybersecurity and AI, and detailing actions taken and recommendations for policy changes.

Addresses vulnerabilities concerning agricultural data, foreign influence, and emerging technologies.

Recognizes the need to identify national security vulnerabilities in food and agriculture, especially emerging technologies.

A BILL To improve connections between the Department of Agriculture and national and homeland security agencies, and for other purposes.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. Short title.

This Act may be cited as the “Agriculture and National 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, including with regard to agriculture and food defense, critical infrastructure, emergency management, and catastrophic events, but additional efforts are needed to identify national security vulnerabilities related to food and agriculture, particularly with regard to emerging technologies.

Prioritizes national security in agriculture; appoints Senior Advisor; improves interagency coordination and information sharing.

SEC. 3. National security.

(a) In general.—In recognition that food and agriculture 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 Agriculture (referred to in this Act as the “Department”), including by increasing the number of staff at the Department with security clearances and access to classified systems and networks.

(b) Senior Advisor for National Security.—

(1) APPOINTMENT.—Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall—

(A) establish within the Office of the Secretary the position of Senior Advisor for National Security (referred to in this Act as the “Senior Advisor”); and

(B) appoint an individual to the position of Senior Advisor.

(2) DUTIES.—The Senior Advisor shall, in coordination with and complementary to the duties of the Office of Homeland Security of the Department—

(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 security;

(C) coordinate national security activities across the Department, including to ensure that national security concerns are integrated into the homeland security activities of the Department 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 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 personnel detailed from, defense, national and homeland security, law enforcement, and intelligence agencies, with or without reimbursement, to improve information sharing, vulnerability identification, and risk mitigation related to food and agriculture.”.

Mandates biennial reports assessing and addressing national security gaps in U.S. food and agriculture.

(d) Biennial reports.—Section 221 of the Department 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 frequently than once every 2 years thereafter, the Secretary shall submit to Congress and the National Security Council 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 enterprise;

“(B) control of and access to agricultural data;

“(C) foreign acquisition of intellectual property, agricultural assets, and land;

“(D) agricultural input shortages and dependence on foreign-sourced inputs;

“(E) supply chain and trade disruptions;

“(F) science and technology cooperation;

“(G) cybersecurity and artificial intelligence;

“(H) unequal investments in research, development, 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 address any gaps or limitations identified under paragraph (1), including through interagency coordination, threat information sharing, and stakeholder outreach;

“(3) policy recommendations, including recommendations for executive actions and legislative proposals—

“(A) to reduce any gaps or limitations identified under paragraph (1); and

“(B) to address any identified vulnerabilities with respect to the gaps or limitations identified under paragraph (1); and

“(4) resources the Department requires to address current and future national security vulnerabilities related to food and agriculture.”.