Opening Statement (As Prepared)

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Thank you, Mr. Chairman, for convening this hearing, and thank you to our witnesses for appearing before us today.
 
Back in 2021, as part of the Fiscal Year 2022 National Defense Authorization Act, this committee recognized the compelling need for a sustained, expert look at biotechnology and its intersection with national security and created the National Security Commission on Emerging Biotechnology. Together with our distinguished witnesses, I’ve been proud to serve as one of the Commissioners as we have wrestled with our review of this very complex set of challenges. Thank you Senator Young and Dr. Rozo both for your sustained efforts leading to the release of this final report.
 
The Chinese Communist Party continues to prioritize biotechnology through research and development, and we now risk ceding global leadership in this field. The CCP confers massive subsidies and preferential regulatory treatment on its biotechnology companies, and those investments have resulted in explosive growth. As a result, China is now the largest funder of agricultural research and development in the world, Chinese biotechnology companies have experienced a more than 100x growth in their market capitalization, and the majority of the most-cited research in fields such as synthetic biology is done not in the U.S. or in Europe, but in China. By contrast, we lack a coordinated national strategy and high-level departmental and agency leadership in biotechnology. If we continue along this path, we risk ceding leadership in infrastructure, supply chains, and intellectual property, and the consequences for our national security and economic competitiveness will be dire.
 
However, by unleashing the full power of American innovation smartly and with proper oversight and whole-of-government coordination, we can preserve American biotechnology leadership and harness the full potential of these powerful technologies for our national and economic security. In this new era of global competition, we must continue to evolve and innovate to stay ahead of our peers. We must be aggressive, and we must act now.
 
I have been proud to be a part of this Commission, and I hope that the final report and our discussion today can lead to the first critical steps toward addressing this complex web of challenges. I thank both of our witnesses for appearing today, I thank them, our fellow commissioners, and the dedicated Commission staff for their service and expertise, and I also thank you, Mr. Chairman, for convening us here this afternoon. I’m looking forward to our conversation, and I yield back.