Agricultural Risk Review Act of 2025

Floor Speech

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Mrs. WAGNER. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 1713) to amend the Defense Production Act of 1950 to include the Secretary of Agriculture as a member of the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, and for other purposes, as amended.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 1713

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 ``Agricultural Risk Review Act of 2025''. SEC. 2. INCLUSION OF THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE ON THE COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN INVESTMENT IN THE UNITED STATES.

Section 721(k) of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 4565(k)) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``(8) Inclusion of the secretary of agriculture.--The Secretary of Agriculture shall be a member of the Committee with respect to a covered transaction that involves--

``(A) agricultural land;

``(B) agriculture biotechnology; or

``(C) the agriculture industry, including agricultural transportation, storage, and processing.''. SEC. 3. CONSIDERATION OF CERTAIN AGRICULTURAL LAND TRANSACTIONS.

Section 721(b)(1) of the Defense Production Act of 1950 (50 U.S.C. 4565(b)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``(I) Consideration of certain agricultural land transactions.--

``(i) In general.--After receiving notification from the Secretary of Agriculture of a reportable agricultural land transaction, the Committee shall determine--

``(I) whether the transaction is a covered transaction; and

``(II) if the Committee determines that the transaction is a covered transaction, whether the Committee should initiate a review pursuant to subparagraph (D), or take another action authorized under this section, with respect to the reportable agricultural land transaction.

``(ii) Reportable agricultural land transaction.--In this subparagraph, the term `reportable agricultural land transaction' means a transaction--

``(I) that the Secretary of Agriculture has reason to believe is a covered transaction, based on information from or in cooperation with the intelligence community;

``(II) that involves the acquisition of an interest in agricultural land by a foreign person of the People's Republic of China, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, or the Islamic Republic of Iran; and

``(III) with respect to which a person is required to submit a report to the Secretary of Agriculture under section 2(a) of the Agricultural Foreign Investment Disclosure Act of 1978.

``(iii) Sunset.--The requirements under this subparagraph shall terminate, with respect to a foreign person of the respective foreign country, on the date that the People's Republic of China, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation, or the Islamic Republic of Iran, as the case may be, is removed from the list of foreign adversaries in section 791.4 of title 15, Code of Federal Regulations.''.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1713, the Agricultural Risk Review Act of 2025. I thank Representative Lucas for his longstanding leadership on this important legislation.

Today, the United States confronts a critical issue at the intersection of national security and agriculture: foreign investment in American farmland.

The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or CFIUS, plays a vital role in safeguarding our country by reviewing foreign acquisitions that could pose risks to our national security. Ensuring that CFIUS has the right expertise and authority to evaluate these transactions is more important than ever.

For the first time since 2007, H.R. 1713 would formally add a Cabinet Secretary to CFIUS, giving the Secretary of Agriculture an official role in reviewing relevant agricultural transactions for national security risks.

CFIUS has long held jurisdiction over foreign acquisitions of agricultural businesses, including farmland involved in interstate commerce. Since 2018, it has also been authorized to perform reviews of land purchases near sensitive government sites. However, there is a need to connect the Agriculture Department's expertise, including its longstanding tracking of farmland purchases, with CFIUS' operations.

CFIUS could greatly benefit from the Secretary's expertise, and that is what Congressman Lucas' legislation allows. As one of the first Members of Congress to recognize this need at CFIUS, I applaud Representative Lucas for his foresight and his dedication in advancing this legislation.

I look forward to supporting his bill today. I urge all my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 1713, and I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mrs. WAGNER. Mr. Speaker, in closing, there is a need to connect the Agriculture Department's expertise, including its longstanding tracking of farmland purchases, with CFIUS' operations.

I look forward to supporting this bill today. I urge my colleagues to do so and join me in supporting H.R. 1713, and I applaud Mr. Lucas for this bill.

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