H.R. 8432

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8432 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 8432

To provide the Food and Drug Administration needed authorities to carry 
out its regulatory mission with respect to human foods, to provide 
additional resources and authorities with respect to human foods 
research, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

April 22, 2026

Ms. DeGette introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Energy and Commerce

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To provide the Food and Drug Administration needed authorities to carry 
out its regulatory mission with respect to human foods, to provide 
additional resources and authorities with respect to human foods 
research, 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. TABLE OF CONTENTS.

The table of contents for this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Table of contents.
Sec. 2. Sense of Congress on funding food sector innovation projects.
Sec. 3. Advisory Committee on Human Foods.
Sec. 4. Critical research grant program.
Sec. 5. HFP and CDER center of excellence.
Sec. 6. Paperwork Reduction Act exemption for FDA research.
Sec. 7. Recordkeeping requirements for processed food recipes.
Sec. 8. Public-private partnership for information sharing and chemical 
limits in foods.

SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON FUNDING FOOD SECTOR INNOVATION PROJECTS.

(a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that an 
account, to be known as the ``Human Foods Innovation Account'', should 
be established for purposes of the Food and Drug Administration 
carrying out the activities described in subsection (b).
(b) FDA Activities.--The activities described in this subsection 
are--
(1) the critical research grants under section 4;
(2) the establishment and maintenance of the center of 
excellence described in section 5;
(3) the public-private partnership under section 8;
(4) the development of modernized standards for human 
foods, including foods for infants and young children;
(5) the development of modernized standards for enhanced 
human food safety and supply chain continuity;
(6) advances in human foods nutrition innovation;
(7) the development of strengthened dietary supplement 
authorities;
(8) research relating to human foods biotechnology;
(9) the development of modernized regulatory tools for 
chemicals in human foods;
(10) modernizing risk assessment and enhanced risk-informed 
decision making with respect to human foods;
(11) enhanced technical capacity using hiring authority 
provided by the Food and Drug Omnibus Reform Act of 2022 (title 
III of division FF of Public Law 117-328); and
(12) such projects enabling innovation and technological 
advancements in the human foods sector and a fuller 
understanding of nutrition, as the Commissioner determines 
appropriate.

SEC. 3. ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON HUMAN FOODS.

(a) In General.--The Secretary of Health and Human Services (in 
this section referred to as the ``Secretary'') shall establish and 
maintain a permanent advisory committee to be known as the ``Advisory 
Committee on Human Foods'' (referred to in this section as the 
``Committee'').
(b) Duties of Committee.--The Committee shall advise the 
Commissioner on issues related to food science, nutrition, and food 
safety.
(c) Members.--The Secretary shall ensure that the Committee is 
composed of experts on nutrition, experts on food safety, and 
representatives of consumer, producer, and health professional 
organizations.

SEC. 4. CRITICAL RESEARCH GRANT PROGRAM.

(a) Critical Research Grants.--The Secretary of Health and Human 
Services (in this section referred to as the ``Secretary''), acting 
through the Commissioner of Food and Drugs and the Director of the 
National Institutes of Health, shall award grants, on a competitive 
basis, to eligible entities to promote research in critical areas, 
including--
(1) food biotechnology;
(2) nutrition initiatives to promote greater access to 
healthier foods and information about foods;
(3) infant and maternal nutrition;
(4) health impacts of ultra-processed foods;
(5) safety and reliability of specialty foods such as 
infant formula;
(6) health impacts of dietary supplements; and
(7) public understanding of the risks and benefits of 
ultra-processed foods, dietary supplements, and other nutrition 
sources.
(b) Collaboration.--In awarding grants under subsection (a), the 
Secretary shall prioritize projects that foster collaboration among a 
broad range of partners.
(c) Applications.--To be eligible to receive a grant under this 
section, an entity shall submit to the Secretary an application at such 
time, in such manner, and containing such information as the Secretary 
may determine appropriate.
(d) Eligible Entity Defined.--In this section, the term ``eligible 
entity'' means a public or private nonprofit organization with 
recognized capacity and expertise in one or more of the areas described 
in subsection (a).

SEC. 5. HFP AND CDER CENTER OF EXCELLENCE.

(a) In General.--The Commissioner of Food and Drugs, acting through 
the Deputy Commissioner of Human Foods and the Director of the Center 
for Drug Evaluation and Research, shall establish and maintain a center 
of excellence to improve nutrition science and how nutrition relates to 
medicine.
(b) Activities of Center of Excellence.--The center of excellence 
established under subsection (a) shall--
(1) coordinate the programs and activities of the Food and 
Drug Administration relating to areas of convergence between 
the Human Foods Program and the programs and activities of the 
Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, including related to--
(A) the rise of medical drug use in weight loss;
(B) medications to mitigate the effects of allergic 
reactions from exposure to certain foods;
(C) the role of nutrition in maintaining overall 
health along or in conjunction with pharmaceutical 
interventions, physical activity, and other activities; 
and
(D) programs that support healthy eating through 
the medical system, such as produce prescription 
programs; and
(2) act as a platform for agency-wide collaboration and 
communication to drive research and innovation in the food-as-
medicine field.

SEC. 6. PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT EXEMPTION FOR FDA RESEARCH.

Chapter X of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 
391 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following:

``SEC. 1015. PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT EXEMPTION.

``Subchapter I of chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code, 
(commonly referred to as the `Paperwork Reduction Act') shall not apply 
to the voluntary collection of information during the conduct of 
research by the Food and Drug Administration.''.

SEC. 7. RECORDKEEPING REQUIREMENTS FOR PROCESSED FOOD RECIPES.

Section 414(a) of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (21 
U.S.C. 350c(a)) is amended--
(1) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (5);
(2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
``(3) Processed food recipes.--With respect to an article 
of food that is a processed food, each person (excluding farms 
and restaurants) who manufactures, processes, packs, 
distributes, receives, holds, or imports such article shall, at 
the request of an officer or employee duly designated by the 
Secretary, permit such officer or employee, upon presentation 
of appropriate credentials and a written notice to such person, 
at reasonable times and within reasonable limits and in a 
reasonable manner, to have access to and copy all records 
relating to the recipe and contents of such article, 
including--
``(A) the labeled and nonlabeled ingredients;
``(B) the amounts of each ingredient; and
``(C) listings of all relevant authorizations by 
product.
``(4) Nonlabeled ingredients.--
``(A) In general.--With respect to an article of 
food that is a processed food that includes contents 
which are not declared on the label, the manufacturer 
(excluding farms and restaurants) of such article shall 
submit to the Commissioner the contents, including 
flavors, colors, spices, and incidental additives, of 
such article.
``(B) Disclosure.--The Commissioner shall publish 
on a website a list of articles described in 
subparagraph (A) and their contents.''; and
(3) in paragraph (5), as so redesignated, by striking ``The 
requirement under paragraphs (1) and (2) applies'' and 
inserting ``The requirements under paragraphs (1) through (3) 
apply''.

SEC. 8. PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP FOR INFORMATION SHARING AND CHEMICAL 
LIMITS IN FOODS.

(a) In General.--The Commissioner of Food and Drugs (in this 
section referred to as the ``Commissioner'') shall enter into a 
partnership with 1 or more appropriate nongovernmental entities--
(1) to facilitate information sharing across industry, 
academia, and consumer groups about the composition, use, and 
long-term impacts of food packaging materials; and
(2) to recommend to the Commissioner appropriate limits for 
chemicals in food and food-contact substances.
(b) Reports to Congress.--Not later than 18 months after the date 
on which the Commissioner enters into the partnership described in 
subsection (a), and annually thereafter, the Commissioner shall submit 
to Congress a report describing the work completed by the partnership 
and any ongoing work of the partnership.
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