Krishnamoorthi, Wenstrup Introduce Bipartisan Biosecurity Oversight Bill

Washington, D.C. - Today, Ranking Member Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and Chairman Brad Wenstrup (R-OH) of the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic introduced the bipartisan Elevating Biotechnology Threats Reporting Act. This bill would ensure the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), National Security Agency (NSA), and Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) each independently report their findings on biosecurity threats to the House and Senate Select Intelligence Committees by June 30, 2025. 

The bill would require these agencies to describe to Congressional Intelligence Committees the methods each agency uses to provide biosecurity threats intelligence, the support and outside experts consulted, and any gaps impeding efforts to target, collect, and analyze biotechnology threats.

“From diagnosing diseases to baking bread, biotechnology holds immense potential for advancing human health, agriculture, and environmental sustainability, but foreign adversaries are using this science to potentially cause ethical and social hazards that can affect many Americans for years to come. ‘The Elevating Biotechnology Threats Reporting Act’ would require the Intelligence Community to assess biotechnology threats and efforts to combat them, and will be a vital step to protect U.S. interests, improve preparedness, and elevate our response capabilities,” said Ranking Member Raja Krishnamoorthi.

"As a member of the Intelligence Committee and Chairman of the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, I have been charged with investigating the origins of COVID-19. During the pandemic, the intelligence community was slow to respond to Congress, and Americans received contradictory and confusing information on our understanding of the origins of the virus. This bill would ensure Congress, as Americans’ elected representatives, are fully briefed on the biosecurity intelligence gathering process," said Chairman of the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic Brad Wenstrup, D.P.M. "This legislation will help Congress provide oversight on a crucial area of national health security so lawmakers can rectify areas of needed improvement and bolster American pandemic preparedness."

You can read the full text of the bill here.

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