1.Foundation for Food and
Agriculture Research
(a)In
this section:
(1)The
term Board means the Board of Directors described in subsection
(e).
(2)The
term Department means the Department of Agriculture.
(3)The
term Foundation means the Foundation for Food and Agriculture
Research established under subsection (b).
(4)The
term Secretary means the Secretary of Agriculture.
(b)
(1)The Secretary shall establish a nonprofit corporation to
be known as the Foundation for Food and Agriculture
Research
.
(2)
(A)The Foundation shall be considered to be an entity
described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt
from taxation under section 501(a) of such Code.
(B)The
Foundation shall not be an agency or instrumentality of the United States
Government.
(c)The purposes of the Foundation shall
be—
(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;
(C)food safety,
nutrition, and health;
(D)renewable energy,
natural resources, and the environment;
(E)agricultural and
food security;
(F)agriculture
systems and technology; and
(G)agriculture
economies and rural communities; and
(2)to foster
collaboration with agricultural researchers from the Federal Government,
institutions of higher education, industry, and nonprofit organizations.
(d)
(1)The 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;
(C)identify unmet
and emerging agricultural research needs after reviewing the Roadmap for
Agricultural Research, Education and Extension as required by section 7504 of
the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (7 U.S.C. 7614a);
(D)facilitate
technology transfer and release of information and data gathered from the
activities of the Foundation to the agricultural research community;
(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)The
Foundation shall be the sole entity responsible for carrying out the activities
described in this subsection.
(3)Relationship to
other activitiesThe activities described in paragraph (1) shall
be supplemental to any other activities at the Department and shall not preempt
any authority or responsibility of the Department under another provision of
law.
(e)
(1)The
Foundation shall be governed by a Board of Directors.
(2)
(A)The Board shall be composed of appointed and ex-officio,
nonvoting members.
(B)The ex-officio members of the Board shall be the
following individuals or designees:
(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.
(C)
(i)The ex-officio members of the Board under 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)
(I)The
ex-officio members shall ensure that a majority of the members of the Board
have actual experience in agricultural research and, to the extent practicable,
represent diverse sectors of agriculture.
(II)No
employee of the Federal Government may serve as an appointed member of the
Board under this subparagraph.
(III)Appointment to the Board under this subparagraph shall
not constitute Federal employment.
(iii)All
appointed members of the Board shall be voting members.
(D)The
Board shall, from among the members of the Board, designate an individual to
serve as Chair of the Board.
(3)Not later than 60 days after the date of enactment of
this Act, 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)
(A)The 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 the conflict of interest
standards under section 208 of title 18, United States Code;
(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; and
(iv)carry out any
other necessary activities regarding the Foundation.
(B)In 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)
(A)
(i)The term of each member of the Board appointed under
paragraph (2)(C) shall be 5 years.
(ii)If a member of the Board does not serve the full term
applicable under clause (i), the individual appointed to fill the resulting
vacancy shall be appointed for the remainder of the term of the predecessor of
the individual.
(iii)A
member of the Board may continue to serve after the expiration of the term of
the member until a successor is appointed.
(B)Any
vacancy in the membership of the Board shall be filled in the manner in which
the original position was made and shall not affect the power of the remaining
members to execute the duties of the Board.
(6)Members
of the Board may not receive compensation for service on the Board but may be
reimbursed for travel, subsistence, and other necessary expenses incurred in
carrying out the duties of the Board.
(7)A majority of the members of the Board shall constitute a
quorum for purposes of conducting business of the Board.
(f)
(1)
(A)The Board shall hire an Executive Director who shall
carry out such duties and responsibilities as the Board may prescribe.
(B)The
Executive Director shall serve at the pleasure of the Board.
(2)
(A)In 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 any 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;
(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 gift, 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 patents and licenses for devices and procedures
developed by the Foundation and employees 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)No
appointed member of the Board or officer or employee of the Foundation or of
any program established by the Foundation (other than ex-officio members of the
Board) shall exercise administrative control over any Federal employee.
(3)
(A)The
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)
(i)Annual report
on foundation
(I)Not later than 5 months following the end of each fiscal
year, the Foundation shall publish a report for the preceding fiscal year that
includes—
- (aa)a
description of Foundation activities, including accomplishments; and
- (bb)a
comprehensive statement of the operations and financial condition of the
Foundation.
(II)Each report under subclause (I) shall include a
description of all gifts or grants to the Foundation of real or personal
property or money, which shall include—
- (aa)the
source of the gifts or grants; and
- (bb)any
restrictions on the purposes for which the gift or grant may be used.
(III)The
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)The Board shall hold an annual public meeting to
summarize the activities of the Foundation.
(ii)Any recipient of a grant under subsection (d)(1)(A)
shall provide the Foundation with a report at the conclusion of any research or
studies conducted the describes the results of the research or studies,
including any data generated.
(4)
(A)To ensure integrity in the operations of the Foundation,
the Board shall develop and enforce procedures relating to standards of
conduct, financial disclosure statements, conflict of interest (including
recusal and waiver rules), audits, and any other matters determined appropriate
by the Board.
(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 109 of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5
U.S.C. App.)) 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)The Board shall adopt written standards to govern
ownership of any intellectual property rights derived from the collaborative
efforts of the Foundation.
(6)The
United States shall not be liable for any debts, defaults, acts, or omissions
of the Foundation nor shall the full faith and credit of the United States
extend to any obligations of the Foundation.