National Biotechnology Initiative Act of 2025

This bill establishes the National Biotechnology Initiative to advance national security, economic productivity, and competitiveness through coordination of federal biotechnology activities. It creates an Interagency Committee and a National Biotechnology Coordination Office within the Executive Office of the President to oversee planning, research, data management, commercialization, regulatory streamlining, biosafety, workforce development, and international partnerships across multiple federal agencies.

Sec. 2, Definitions: Defines key terms including 'bioliteracy' (understanding of biology and biotechnology), 'biological data' (information from biological systems), 'biomanufacturing' (applying biotechnology to manufacturing), 'biotechnology' (using living organisms or their parts), and other terms related to the Initiative's structure.

Sec. 3, Authorization of the National Biotechnology Initiative: Requires the President to implement an initiative advancing national security, economic productivity, and competitiveness through federal biotechnology activities. Lists 13 participating agencies including Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Energy, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Interior, State, EPA, NASA, NSF, Office of Director of National Intelligence, and U.S. Trade Representative. Specifies activities such as creating a national biotechnology strategy, addressing national security implications, supporting R&D, managing biological data, promoting commercialization, regulatory streamlining, biosafety, workforce development, bioliteracy, and international partnerships.

Sec. 4, Initiative Coordination: Establishes an Interagency Committee with one Assistant Secretary-level member from each participating agency, three co-chairpersons (including the Director of the National Biotechnology Coordination Office), and staggered terms. Creates the National Biotechnology Coordination Office within the Executive Office of the President, headed by a Director appointed by the President who serves as principal advisor on biotechnology. The Office handles planning and coordination, national security assessments, R&D coordination, biological data and database management, product commercialization support, regulatory streamlining (including developing clear regulatory pathways and a public plan within one year), and biosafety and biosecurity strategies.

Sec. 5, Convening of Experts on Biotechnology Research and Development: Authorizes the Director, in consultation with the Interagency Committee, to convene experts to assess and inform Initiative activities, exempting such convenings from the Federal Advisory Committee Act.

Sec. 6, Agency Activities: Requires each participating agency to conduct activities supporting the Initiative across defense, human health, food and agriculture, energy, space, mining, environmental stewardship, and other sectors. These include planning and coordination (designating an Assistant Secretary-level lead), national security (analyzing foreign threats, supply chain risks, cybersecurity), R&D (sustained support, joint solicitations, developing instrumentation and standards), data and databases (establishing and maintaining biological databases with privacy protections, developing standards and computational tools), product commercialization (supporting translation and scale-up, utilizing SBIR/STTR programs, facilitating public-private partnerships, supporting testbeds and industrial retooling), regulatory streamlining (easing burdens for well-understood products, establishing clear pathways, ensuring risk-proportionate regulation), biosafety and biosecurity (addressing risks, developing management plans and frameworks, conducting outreach), and workforce development (supporting education and training programs, connecting researchers with entrepreneurship opportunities, supporting curriculum development and fellowships).