119:s:854 — Risky Research Review Act

Sponsor

Introduced by

Rand Paul

R Republican · Senate · KY R+15

Chairman · Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

Latest action

Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 164.

Action timeline

Every recorded action on this bill, newest first. Stage badges color-code the legislative path.

Sep 17, 2025

committee Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Reported by Senator Paul without amendment. Without written report.

Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee

Sep 17, 2025

other Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 164.

Jul 30, 2025

committee Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. Ordered to be reported without amendment favorably.

Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee

Mar 05, 2025

introduced Introduced in Senate

Mar 05, 2025

introduced Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee

Text versions

Each stage of the bill — official text published by GPO. Click any format to read on congress.gov / govinfo.

Sep 17, 2025 Reported to Senate

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Mar 05, 2025 Introduced in Senate

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CRS summaries

Plain-English summaries written by the Congressional Research Service — neutral, nonpartisan staff who summarize bills as they advance through stages. The authoritative description of what each version of the bill does.

00 Introduced in Senate Mar 05, 2025

Risky Research Review Act This bill establishes the Life Sciences Research Security Board to oversee the award of federal funding for high-risk life sciences research. High-risk life sciences research means the study of an organism, virus, or related product that could be misapplied to pose a significant threat to the public or could enhance the transmissibility or virulence of certain high-risk pathogens (e.g., Ebola). Specifically, the bill establishes the board as an independent agency that must review proposed high-risk life sciences research, determine whether a federal agency may award funding for the research, and determine minimum required controls for funded research. Entities that are seeking federal funding must attest to whether their research is high-risk life sciences research. Agencies must certify the validity of these attestations and submit proposed high-risk life sciences research to the board. Agencies must also notify the board of intended awards for other life sciences research for potential review. In making its determinations, the board must consider specified factors, including whether the benefits of the research outweigh the risks. The bill prohibits agencies from awarding federal funding for high-risk life sciences research without approval of the board or for life sciences research currently under board review. The board may also review awards that were made before the bill’s enactment. Entities that fail to properly attest to the nature of their research may lose their eligibility for funding. Additionally, agency employees who fail to comply with the bill's requirements are subject to disciplinary action.

via Congressional Research Service · published through congress.gov

Changelog

ⓘ

How a bill moves through Congress. Each stage produces a new official text. The diff between them shows what changed at that step.

`ih` / `is` — Introduced in House / Senate. First filed version.

`rfh` / `rfs` — Referred to a committee for review.

`rh` / `rs` — Reported back by the committee to the floor (often with amendments — this is where most language changes happen).

`pcs` / `pch` — Placed on Calendar for floor consideration.

`eh` / `es` — Engrossed. Passed by the originating chamber. Text is now what was actually voted on.

`rdh` / `rds` — Received by the other chamber.

`eah` / `eas` — Engrossed Amendment. The other chamber passed an amended version.

`ath` / `ats` — Agreed to. Both chambers settled on the same text.

`enr` — Enrolled. Final reconciled text, sent to the President.

`pl` — Public Law. Signed by the President. It's now law.

`pp` — Public Print. Official printing post-enactment.

Most bills die before `eh`/`es`. Going from `pcs` → `enr` is the full path through both chambers.

Line-level diff between text versions of this bill — what actually changed at each legislative stage.

+26 −2 16 unchanged

--- Introduced (Senate)

+++ Reported (Senate)

@@ -1,8 +1,9 @@

[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

-[S. 854 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

+[S. 854 Reported in Senate (RS)]

<DOC>

+Calendar No. 164

119th CONGRESS

1st Session

S. 854

@@ -19,6 +20,10 @@

Mr. Paul (for himself and Mr. Peters) introduced the following bill;

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security

and Governmental Affairs

+

+September 17 (legislative day, September 16), 2025

+

+Reported by Mr. Paul, without amendment

_______________________________________________________________________

@@ -1091,4 +1096,23 @@

(3) by adding at the end the following:

``(13) a member of the Life Sciences Research Security

Board established under section 7902 of title 31.''.

-<all>

+Calendar No. 164

+

+119th CONGRESS

+

+1st Session

+

+S. 854

+

+_______________________________________________________________________

+

+A BILL

+

+To amend title 31, United States Code, to establish the Life Sciences

+Research Security Board, and for other purposes.

+

+_______________________________________________________________________

+

+September 17 (legislative day, September 16), 2025

+

+Reported without amendment

Lobbying activity

Organizations whose LDA filings reference this bill, ranked by filing count. Position not disclosed — LDA does not require lobbyists to report support / oppose / monitor. Bill-number references can be stale (lobbyists sometimes copy text year-over-year), so verify against the filing description.

BIOTECHNOLOGY INNOVATION ORGANIZATION

HCR

1

filings · 2025 Q1

UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE

HCR

1

filings · 2025 Q1

via Senate LDA · self-reported quarterly. Filing count = filings mentioning this bill (no position required), not money spent on it. Click a client to see all bills they've filed on.

Cosponsors (1)

Members who signed on to support this bill.

Peters D