H.R. 7949

Summary

H.R. 7949, the NSF Plant Biology Act, was introduced in the House on Mar 16, 2026 by Rep. Josh Riley (D) with 2 co-sponsors. It was referred to Science, Space, And Technology, and last saw action on Mar 16, 2026: Referred to the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology.

Record

Text

H.R. 7949 has 2 co-sponsors.

119 HR 7949 IH: Plant Biological Research at the National Science Foundation Act
 U.S. House of Representatives
 2026-03-16
 text/xml
 EN
 Pursuant to Title 17 Section 105 of the United States Code, this file is not subject to copyright protection and is in the public domain.
 I  119th CONGRESS  2d Session  H. R. 7949  IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES   March 16, 2026   Mr. Riley of New York  (for himself and  Mr. Baird ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the  Committee on Science, Space, and Technology    A BILL
To amend the National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 2002 to provide for grants to support plant and microbial biology research with potential relevance to agriculture, food, or biotechnology, and for other purposes.
1.
Short title
This Act may be cited as the   Plant Biological Research at the National Science Foundation Act   or the   NSF Plant Biology Act  .
2.
Fundamental plant biology research
(a)
In general
The National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 2002 is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
27.
Fundamental plant biology research
(a)
In general
The Director may award grants on a competitive, merit-reviewed basis to institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations, private sector entities, and Federal, State, local, or Tribal governments, or a consortia of such institutions, entities, or governments, to support plant and microbial biology research with potential relevance to agriculture, food, or biotechnology, including relating to the following:
(1)
Fundamental research regarding plant biology.
(2)
Tools, resources, and technology that further enable plant biology.
(b)
Authorization of appropriations
There is authorized to be appropriated to the Director $150,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2026 through 2031 to carry out this section.
 .
(b)
Definition amendment
Section 4 of the National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 2002 is amended by—
(1)
redesignating paragraphs (13) through (16) as paragraphs (14) through (17), respectively; and
(2)
by inserting after paragraph (12) the following new paragraph:
(13)
Nonprofit organization
The term  nonprofit organization  means an organization described in  section 501(c)(3)  of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from tax under section 15 501(a) of such Code.
 .

Tracker

The tracker indicates the progress of this legislation as it moves through the legislative process.

To amend the National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 2002 to provide for grants to support plant and microbial biology research with potential relevance to agriculture, food, or biotechnology, and for other purposes.

Sponsors

Rep. Josh Riley (D) sponsors H.R. 7949, and 2 members have co-sponsored it, 1 of them from the day it was introduced.

Josh Riley

Rep. · D–NY-19 · Sponsor

Introduced Mar 16, 2026

James Baird

Rep. · R–IN-4 · Co-sponsor

Joined Mar 16, 2026 · Original

Wesley Bell

Rep. · D–MO-1 · Co-sponsor

Joined Apr 9, 2026

Show 3 of 3 rows

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Committees

H.R. 7949 went before 1 committee: Science, Space, and Technology.

Science, Space, and Technology

Science, Space, and Technology

Referred To · Mar 16, 2026 · 178 Bills

Actions

H.R. 7949 has taken 2 actions since Mar 16, 2026.

Votes

H.R. 7949 has not gone to a roll call.

Titles

H.R. 7949 goes by 4 titles, 2 of them short titles.

• NSF Plant Biology Act — Display Title
• NSF Plant Biology Act — Short Title(s) as Introduced
• Plant Biological Research at the National Science Foundation Act — Short Title(s) as Introduced
• To amend the National Science Foundation Authorization Act of 2002 to provide for grants to support plant and microbial biology research with potential relevance to agriculture, food, or biotechnology, and for other purposes. — Official Title as Introduced

Lobbying

3 clients hired 3 firms and 9 registered lobbyists who named H.R. 7949 in 5 quarterly filings, 2025 to 2026. Reported under the Lobbying Disclosure Act; a filing’s income covers everything its registrant worked that quarter, so the amounts below are the filings’, not this bill’s.

Filed under Budget/Appropriations, Science/Technology, Agriculture, Copyright/Patent/Trademark, Defense, Education, Energy/Nuclear, Food Industry (safety, labeling, etc.).

Clients

Who paid to be heard, by how many filings named the bill.

Firms

Registrants who filed on the bill, by filings.

Lobbyists

Named on the filings that cite the bill.

Filings

The documents themselves, on the Senate’s Lobbying Disclosure site, largest reported first.

Classification

The Congressional Research Service files H.R. 7949 under Science, Technology, Communications, one of its 31 policy areas.

CRS Subjects

CRS assigns every bill one policy area from its 31; H.R. 7949’s is Science, Technology, Communications.

Constitutional authority

The clause the sponsor cites as Congress’s power to enact H.R. 7949, as entered in the Congressional Record.

[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 47 (Monday, March 16, 2026)][House]From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]By Mr. RILEY of New York:H.R. 7949.Congress has the power to enact this legislation pursuantto the following:Article I Section VIII[Page H2530]

Source: congress.gov · legiscan.com