H.R. 4373: Engineering Biology Research and Development Act of 2019

116th Congress · introduced 2019-09-18 · Science, Technology, Communications · Latest: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2019-09-18 · official record
Who proposed it: Rep. Johnson, Eddie Bernice [D-TX-30] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Engineering Biology Research and Development Act of 2019

Plain summary

Engineering Biology Research and Development Act of 2019 This bill directs the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) to implement a National Engineering Biology Research and Development Initiative; the OSTP to designate an interagency committee to coordinate the initiative; the President to establish an Initiative Coordination Office; the OSTP to designate or establish an advisory committee on engineering biology research and development; the National Science Foundation (NSF) to enter into an agreement with the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine to conduct a review and make recommendations with respect to the ethical, legal, environmental, and other appropriate societal issues related to engineering biology research and development; and the NSF and certain other federal agencies, including the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), to carry out specified research activities as part of the initiative.

Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

What a vote does

A “Yea” vote

If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

If it is not passed, current law stays as it is.

PSI Sci description of the legislative step (not an opinion).

What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Engineering Biology Research and Development Act of 2019

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House)

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The strongest published arguments

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Alternatives

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Johnson, Eddie Bernice [D-TX-30] · 10 cosponsors

Cost estimate: CBO cost estimate: H.R. 4373, Engineering Biology Research and Development Act of 2019 (2019-11-01)

Cosponsors on this site

Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), Frank D. Lucas (R-OK), Bill Foster (D-IL), Brian K. Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Donald S. Beyer, Jr. (D-VA), Sean Casten (D-IL)

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (3)

Appropriation: Money a legislature sets aside by law for a specific purpose. Government agencies may spend public money only as it has been appropriated.
Ballot initiative: A proposed law or constitutional amendment that citizens place on the ballot by gathering enough voter signatures, so voters decide it directly. About half the states allow some form of it.
Bill: A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Passed House)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-116hr4373.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/116/hr>

Record fed-us-cong116-hr4373 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong116 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong116