DOE and USDA Interagency Research Act

The bill would direct the Secretaries of Energy and Agriculture to carry out cross-cutting, collaborative research and development activities focused on joint mission priorities. The two agencies would be required to formalize this work through a memorandum of understanding or other interagency agreement, which must use a competitive, merit-reviewed process open to federal agencies, national laboratories, universities, and nonprofits. Research focus areas would include machine learning and artificial intelligence for agriculture and energy applications, advanced biomass and biofuels, grid modernization and security, wildfire risk and prevention, rural technology and precision agriculture, invasive species management, carbon storage, and methods to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture. Within two years of enactment, the Secretaries would be required to report to four congressional committees on coordination progress, research achievements, and future opportunities.

The bill authorizes but does not appropriate any specific funding — it enables reimbursable agreements and collaboration with other federal agencies but leaves actual spending levels to future appropriations. It also requires that all activities be carried out consistent with federal research security requirements.

The Department of Energy and Department of Agriculture and their staff are the primary entities directed to act. National laboratories, universities, nonprofit research institutions, and private industry partners would be eligible to apply for collaborative projects through the merit-reviewed process. Rural communities and agricultural producers could benefit indirectly from advances in precision agriculture, rural technology, and wildfire mitigation research.

Without a formal coordination framework, overlapping DOE and USDA research investments in areas like bioenergy, water resources, and wildfire can be duplicated or misaligned. A standing interagency agreement with competitive project selection would help direct federal R&D dollars toward problems that neither agency can efficiently solve alone, potentially accelerating breakthroughs in sustainable fuels, grid resilience, and agricultural efficiency.

The Secretaries of Energy and Agriculture would first negotiate and execute a memorandum of understanding or equivalent interagency agreement setting out terms for collaboration. Project selection must use a competitive, merit-reviewed process. The agencies may enter reimbursable agreements with each other and with outside entities, and may bring in other federal agencies as partners. A joint report to four congressional committees — covering coordination activities, research achievements, technical capability gaps, and plans for continued collaboration — must be submitted within two years of enactment. All activities must comply with federal research security requirements under the Research and Development, Competition, and Innovation Act.