7 USC 5939 - Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research

View all text of Subchapter VII [§ 5921 - § 5943]

§ 5939. Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research

(a) DefinitionsIn this section:

(1) Board

(2) Department

(3) Foundation

(4) Secretary

(b) Establishment

(1) In general

(2) Status

(1) to advance the research mission of the Department by supporting agricultural research activities focused on addressing key problems of national and international significance including—

(A) plant health, production, and plant products;

(B) animal health, production, and products;

(D) renewable energy, natural resources, and the environment;

(E) agricultural and food security;

(F) agriculture systems and technology; and

(G) agriculture economics and rural communities; and

(2) to foster collaboration with agricultural researchers from the Federal Government, State (as defined in section 3103 of this title) governments, institutions of higher education (as defined in section 1001 of title 20), industry, and nonprofit organizations.

(d) Duties

(1) In generalThe Foundation shall—

(A) award grants to, or enter into contracts, memoranda of understanding, or cooperative agreements with, scientists and entities, which may include agricultural research agencies in the Department, university consortia, public-private partnerships, institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations, and industry, to efficiently and effectively advance the goals and priorities of the Foundation;

(B) in consultation with the Secretary—

(i) identify existing and proposed Federal intramural and extramural research and development programs relating to the purposes of the Foundation described in subsection (c); and

(ii) coordinate Foundation activities with those programs so as to minimize duplication of existing efforts and to avoid conflicts, specifically at the Department of Agriculture; and

(iii) document the consultation process and include a summary of the results in the annual report required in subsection (f)(3)(B) 1

1 So in original. Probably should be followed by a period.

(C) identify unmet and emerging agricultural research needs after reviewing the roadmap for agricultural research, education, and extension authorized by section 7614a of this title;

(D) facilitate technology transfer and release of information and data gathered from the activities of the Foundation to the agricultural research community and agriculture stakeholders;

(E) promote and encourage the development of the next generation of agricultural research scientists; and

(F) carry out such other activities as the Board determines to be consistent with the purposes of the Foundation.

(2) Relationship to other activities

(e) Board of Directors

(1) Establishment

(2) Composition

(A) In general

(B) Ex-officio membersThe ex-officio members of the Board shall be the following individuals or designees of such individuals:

(i) The Secretary.

(ii) The Under Secretary of Agriculture for Research, Education, and Economics.

(iii) The Administrator of the Agricultural Research Service.

(iv) The Director of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

(v) The Director of the National Science Foundation.

(i) In generalThe ex-officio members of the Board (as specified in subparagraph (B)) shall, by majority vote, appoint to the Board 15 individuals, of whom—(I) 8 shall be selected from a list of candidates to be provided by the National Academy of Sciences; and(II) 7 shall be selected from lists of candidates provided by industry.

(ii) Requirements(I) Expertise(II) Limitation(III) Not Federal employment

(iii) Authority

(D) Chair

(3) Initial meetingNot later than 60 days after February 7, 2014, the Secretary shall convene a meeting of the ex-officio members of the Board—

(A) to incorporate the Foundation; and

(B) to appoint the members of the Board in accordance with paragraph (2)(C)(i).

(4) Duties

(A) In generalThe Board shall—

(i) establish bylaws for the Foundation that, at a minimum, include—(I) policies for the selection of future Board members, officers, employees, agents, and contractors of the Foundation;(II) policies, including ethical standards, for—(aa) the acceptance, solicitation, and disposition of donations and grants to the Foundation; and(bb) the disposition of assets of the Foundation, including appropriate limits on the ability of donors to designate, by stipulation or restriction, the use or recipient of donated funds;(III) policies that would subject all employees, fellows, trainees, and other agents of the Foundation (including members of the Board) to conflict of interest standards in the same manner as Federal employees are subject to the conflict of interest standards under section 208 of title 18;(IV) policies for writing, editing, printing, publishing, and vending of books and other materials;(V) policies for the conduct of the general operations of the Foundation, including a cap on administrative expenses for recipients of a grant, contract, or cooperative agreement from the Foundation; and(VI) specific duties for the Executive Director;

(ii) prioritize and provide overall direction for the activities of the Foundation;

(iii) evaluate the performance of the Executive Director;

(iv) actively solicit and accept funds, gifts, grants, devises, or bequests of real or personal property made to the Foundation, including from private entities; and

(v) carry out any other necessary activities regarding the Foundation.

(B) Establishment of bylawsIn establishing bylaws under subparagraph (A)(i), the Board shall ensure that the bylaws do not—

(i) reflect unfavorably on the ability of the Foundation to carry out the duties of the Foundation in a fair and objective manner; or

(ii) compromise, or appear to compromise, the integrity of any governmental agency or program, or any officer or employee employed by, or involved in, a governmental agency or program.

(5) Terms and vacancies

(A) Terms

(i) In general

(ii) Partial terms

(iii) Transition

(B) Vacancies

(6) Compensation

(7) Meetings and quorum

(f) Administration

(1) Executive Director

(A) In general

(B) Service

(2) Administrative powers

(A) In generalIn carrying out this section, the Board, acting through the Executive Director, may—

(i) adopt, alter, and use a corporate seal, which shall be judicially noticed;

(ii) hire, promote, compensate, and discharge 1 or more officers, employees, and agents, as may be necessary, and define the duties of the officers, employees, and agents;

(iii) solicit and accept funds, gifts, grants, devises, or bequests of real or personal property made to the Foundation, including such support from private entities;

(iv) prescribe the manner in which—(I) real or personal property of the Foundation is acquired, held, and transferred;(II) general operations of the Foundation are to be conducted; and(III) the privileges granted to the Board by law are exercised and enjoyed;

(v) with the consent of the applicable executive department or independent agency, use the information, services, and facilities of the department or agency in carrying out this section on a reimbursable basis;

(vi) enter into contracts with public and private organizations for the writing, editing, printing, and publishing of books and other material;

(vii) hold, administer, invest, and spend any funds, gifts, grant, devise, or bequest of real or personal property made to the Foundation;

(viii) enter into such contracts, leases, cooperative agreements, and other transactions as the Board considers appropriate to conduct the activities of the Foundation;

(ix) modify or consent to the modification of any contract or agreement to which the Foundation is a party or in which the Foundation has an interest;

(x) take such action as may be necessary to obtain and maintain patents for and to license inventions (as defined in section 201 of title 35) developed by the Foundation, employees of the Foundation, or derived from the collaborative efforts of the Foundation;

(xi) sue and be sued in the corporate name of the Foundation, and complain and defend in courts of competent jurisdiction;

(xii) appoint other groups of advisors as may be determined necessary to carry out the functions of the Foundation; and

(xiii) exercise such other incidental powers as are necessary to carry out the duties and functions of the Foundation in accordance with this section.

(B) Limitation

(3) Records

(A) AuditsThe Foundation shall—

(i) provide for annual audits of the financial condition of the Foundation; and

(ii) make the audits, and all other records, documents, and other papers of the Foundation, available to the Secretary and the Comptroller General of the United States for examination or audit.

(B) Reports

(i) Annual report on Foundation(I) In generalNot later than 5 months following the end of each fiscal year, the Foundation shall publish and post online a report for the preceding fiscal year that includes—(aa) a description of Foundation activities, including accomplishments and how those activities align to the challenges identified in the strategic plan under clause (iv);(bb) a comprehensive statement of the operations and financial condition of the Foundation; and(cc) a description of available agricultural research programs and priorities for the upcoming fiscal year.(II) Financial conditionEach report under subclause (I) shall include a description of all gifts, grants, devises, or bequests to the Foundation of real or personal property or money, which shall include—(aa) the source of the gifts, grants, devises, or bequests; and(bb) any restrictions on the purposes for which the gift, grant, devise, or bequest may be used.(III) AvailabilityThe Foundation shall—(aa) make copies of each report submitted under subclause (I) available for public inspection; and(bb) on request, provide a copy of the report to any individual.(IV) Public meeting

(ii) Grant reporting

(iii) Stakeholder noticeThe Foundation shall publish an annual notice with a description of agricultural research priorities under this section for the upcoming fiscal year, including—(I) a schedule for funding competitions;(II) a discussion of how applications for funding will be evaluated; and(III) how the Foundation will communicate information about funded awards to the public to ensure that grantees and partners understand the objectives of the Foundation.

(iv) Strategic planNot later than 1 year after December 20, 2018, the Foundation shall submit to the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate a strategic plan describing a path for the Foundation to become self-sustaining, including—(I) a forecast of major agricultural challenge opportunities identified by the scientific advisory councils of the Foundation and approved by the Board, including short- and long-term objectives;(II) an overview of the efforts that the Foundation will take to be transparent in each of the processes of the Foundation, including—(aa) processes relating to grant awards, including the selection, review, and notification processes;(bb) communication of past, current, and future research priorities; and(cc) plans to solicit and respond to public input on the opportunities identified in the strategic plan;(III) a description of financial goals and benchmarks for the next 10 years, including a detailed plan for—(aa) raising funds in amounts greater than the amounts required under subsection (g)(1)(B);(bb) soliciting additional resources pursuant to subsections (e)(4)(A)(iv) and (f)(2)(A)(iii); and(cc) managing and leveraging such resources pursuant to subsection (f)(2)(A)(vii); and(IV) other related issues, as determined by the Board.

(4) Integrity

(A) In general

(B) Financial conflicts of interestAny individual who is an officer, employee, or member of the Board is prohibited from any participation in deliberations by the Foundation of a matter that would directly or predictably affect any financial interest of—

(i) the individual;

(ii) a relative (as defined in section 13101 of title 5) of that individual; or

(iii) a business organization or other entity in which the individual has an interest, including an organization or other entity with which the individual is negotiating employment.

(5) Intellectual property

(6) Liability

(g) Funds

(1) Funding

(A) In general

(i) Establishment funding

(ii) Enhanced funding

(iii) Additional funding

(B) Conditions on expenditure

(i) In general

(ii) Effect

(2) Separation of funds

(Pub. L. 113–79, title VII, § 7601, Feb. 7, 2014, 128 Stat. 904; Pub. L. 115–334, title VII, § 7603, Dec. 20, 2018, 132 Stat. 4826; Pub. L. 117–286, § 4(c)(18), Dec. 27, 2022, 136 Stat. 4356; Pub. L. 118–22, div. B, title I, § 102(d)(5)(C), Nov. 17, 2023, 137 Stat. 117.)