Stops federal funding for any research center or laboratory in which a national of a listed "country of concern" carries out agricultural research. The listed countries are Cuba; Iran; the Russian Federation; the People’s Republic of China (including Hong Kong and Macau SARs); Venezuela; and North Korea. The measure would affect federal grant and contract support for agricultural research carried out in facilities where nationals of those countries conduct research, and could restrict certain international research collaborations and hiring practices tied to federally funded projects.
No Federal funding shall be available to any research center or laboratory in which a national of a country of concern conducts agricultural research.
Defines the term "country of concern" to include: (1) the Republic of Cuba; (2) the Islamic Republic of Iran; (3) the Russian Federation; (4) the People's Republic of China, including the Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong and the Special Administrative Region of Macau; (5) the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela; and (6) the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
Who is affected and how:
Research institutions and laboratories: Universities, public and private research centers, and nonprofit labs that receive federal funding for agricultural research could lose funding if nationals from the listed countries are conducting agricultural research at those facilities. Institutions may need to change hiring, visiting scholar, and collaboration policies to avoid disqualification.
Individual researchers: Foreign nationals from the specified countries who conduct agricultural research at federally funded facilities may be excluded from participation in those federally funded projects, or institutions may need to limit their on-site research roles to preserve funding.
Federal agencies and program administrators: Agencies that award or manage agricultural research funds will face administrative burdens to identify covered facilities, verify researcher nationality and research activities, and implement funding restrictions.
Agricultural stakeholders and communities: Farmers, agribusinesses, and local communities could see reduced research output, slower technology transfer, or delays in projects supported by affected centers, particularly where collaborative international expertise was part of research programs.
International collaborations and diplomacy: The restriction could chill scientific collaboration with researchers from the named countries and may create diplomatic friction; it may push some collaborations outside federally funded channels.
Legal and compliance risks: Institutions may confront practical challenges verifying nationality, defining when research is "carried out" by a listed national, and defending decisions in contested situations.
Overall, the provision is a targeted funding prohibition with straightforward scope (agricultural research + listed countries) but potentially wide operational effects on university labs, federal program administration, and international research partnerships.
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
Last progress June 5, 2025 (8 months ago)
Introduced on June 5, 2025 by Thomas Bryant Cotton