Bill Details
View committees (1)
View cosponsors (1)
AI Summary This summary was generated by AI from the bill text. AI can get information wrong.
This bill would change the rules for the Department of Energy’s Foundation for Energy Security and Innovation. It would limit who can serve in key roles by requiring board members, the executive director, and other officers or employees to be people with certain legal status in the United States. It would also bar employees of the Department of Energy from being voting members of the board. The bill says these rules must be followed under existing security-related laws.
- No Department of Energy employee could serve as a voting member of the board.
- Voting board members would have to be U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, refugees, or lawful permanent residents.
- The same citizenship or immigration-status limits would apply to the executive director and all other officers and employees of the foundation.
- The bill also says the foundation must follow certain security requirements already in federal law.
Official Summaries
America First Energy Act
This bill places certain restrictions on board members and employees of the Foundation for Energy Security and Innovation of the Department of Energy (DOE). The foundation is an independent, agency-related foundation that assists DOE in addressing energy and environmental challenges through science and technology solutions, including by accelerating the development and commercialization of critical energy technologies and fostering public-private partnerships.
Specifically, the bill requires the foundation's voting board members, executive director, officers, and employees to be U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, non-U.S. nationals (aliens under federal law) admitted as refugees, or non-U.S. nationals lawfully admitted for permanent residence.
Finally, the bill directs the foundation to require covered individuals listed on an application for a research and development award from the foundation to disclose all current and pending research support received or expected to be received by the individuals. Covered individuals means individuals who (1) contribute in a substantive, meaningful way to the scientific development or execution of a research and development project proposed to be carried out with an award from the foundation; and (2) are designated as a covered individual by the foundation.
Current Full Text
[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1365 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1365
To amend the Research and Development, Competition, and Innovation Act
to place certain restrictions on members and activities of the
Foundation for Energy Security and Innovation of the Department of
Energy, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 14, 2025
Mr. Webster of Florida introduced the following bill; which was
referred to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Research and Development, Competition, and Innovation Act
to place certain restrictions on members and activities of the
Foundation for Energy Security and Innovation of the Department of
Energy, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``America First Energy Act''.
SEC. 2. FOUNDATION FOR ENERGY SECURITY AND INNOVATION OF THE DEPARTMENT
OF ENERGY.
Section 10691 of the Research and Development, Competition, and
Innovation Act (42 U.S.C. 19281; enacted as part of division B of
Public Law 117-167) is amended--
(1) in subsection (b)--
(A) in paragraph (2), by amending subparagraph (I)
to read as follows:
``(I) Restrictions on membership.--
``(i) Employees.--No employee of the
Department may be appointed as a voting member
of the Board.
``(ii) Status.--Each voting member of the
Board shall be--
``(I) a citizen of the United
States;
``(II) a national of the United
States (as such term is defined in
section 101(a) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a));
``(III) an alien admitted as a
refugee under section 207 of such Act
(8 U.S.C. 1157); or
``(IV) an alien lawfully admitted
to the United States for permanent
residence.''; and
(B) in paragraph (5), by adding at the end the
following new subparagraph:
``(M) Restrictions.--
``(i) Executive director.--The Executive
Director shall be--
``(I) a citizen of the United
States;
``(II) a national of the United
States (as such term is defined in
section 101(a) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a));
``(III) an alien admitted as a
refugee under section 207 of such Act
(8 U.S.C. 1157); or
``(IV) an alien lawfully admitted
to the United States for permanent
residence.
``(ii) Officers and employees.--Each
officer or employee of the Foundation shall
be--
``(I) a citizen of the United
States;
``(II) a national of the United
States (as such term is defined in
section 101(a) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a));
``(III) an alien admitted as a
refugee under section 207 of such Act
(8 U.S.C. 1157); or
``(IV) an alien lawfully admitted
to the United States for permanent
residence.''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
``(d) Security.--This section shall be carried out in accordance
with the provisions of subtitle D of this title and section 223 of the
William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for
Fiscal Year 2021 (42 U.S.C. 6605).''.
<all>