Agricultural Risk Review Act of 2025

Floor Speech

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Mr. LUCAS. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of my bill, H.R. 1713, the Agricultural Risk Review Act. My bill would make permanent the existing policy enacted under the Consolidated Appropriations Act for fiscal year 2024 and bolster our food security against foreign adversaries.

H.R. 1713 would amend the Defense Production Act to add the Secretary of Agriculture as a permanent member to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or CFIUS, for any transactions related to the purchase of farmland, biotechnology, or any other transaction related to the agricultural industry.

My bill also includes the Safeguarding American Farms from Foreign Influence Act authored last Congress by the former chairman of the Financial Services Subcommittee on National Security, Mr. Luetkemeyer.

That section of the bill requires CFIUS to consider referrals from USDA for reportable agricultural land transactions prior to the interagency process that determines whether review of the transaction is warranted.

These bills received unanimous support when considered separately, and then when joined together were also reported favorably to the floor in a unanimous vote. These are commonsense measures in line with existing practices and current law.

CFIUS' mandate is to review transactions involving foreign investments in the United States to ensure such transactions do not threaten our national security. Agriculture is too important to our country's security to be left out.

Our geopolitical adversaries are eager to exploit vulnerabilities in critical supply chains, such as our food supply. The inclusion of the Secretary of Agriculture in reviews of agricultural transactions is just plain common sense.

Mr. Speaker, my bill has been bipartisan across administrations. Former Agriculture Secretary Perdue under the first Trump administration and former Agriculture Secretary Vilsack under the Biden administration agreed that having a permanent seat at the table is vital to the protection of our farmland and food supply.

I am also pleased to boast bipartisan support from the leadership of the House Financial Services Committee. This bill has passed unanimously out of the House Financial Services Committee for two Congresses now, and it is past time for it to become law.

From Hawaii and Washington to New York and Florida to my home State of Oklahoma, our Nation's agricultural land must be protected. That is why a bipartisan group of Members from over 20 States across the country have supported me in this effort.

I am grateful we took a positive step in the last Congress to include this language in our annual appropriations process, but we must cement this requirement in permanent law.

This legislation recognizes and supports the long-held understanding that food supply is a critical component of U.S. national security. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this bill.

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