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S. 507Senate119th Congress (2025-2027)In Committee

Promoting Precision Agriculture Act of 2025

Sponsored by John ThuneSen. John Thune (R-SD)
Introduced February 11, 2025

AI-Generated Summary

Updated November 24, 2025 at 2:48 AM UTC

The Promoting Precision Agriculture Act of 2025 aims to boost the use of high‑tech farming tools in the United States by establishing voluntary, industry‑led standards for how precision‑agriculture equipment connects and shares data. It seeks to position the U.S. as a leader in setting these standards while ensuring security against foreign adversaries. The law directs the USDA, NIST, and the FCC to create the standards and requires periodic GAO reviews to gauge their impact on adoption and effectiveness.

Key Provisions

  • Within two years, the USDA Secretary, working with NIST and the FCC, must create voluntary, consensus‑based interconnectivity standards, guidelines, and best practices for precision‑agriculture equipment.
  • The standards‑development process must involve trusted private‑sector stakeholders, relevant industry groups, and state and local governments, and consider connectivity needs, cybersecurity threats, advanced wireless (5G‑plus) technology, and artificial‑intelligence impacts.
  • The Secretary must label a communications provider or equipment supplier as “trusted” only if it is not owned or controlled by a foreign adversary.
  • The Government Accountability Office must study the standards’ effectiveness—checking if they are voluntary, industry‑coordinated, and encouraging adoption—starting one year after the standards are issued and then every two years for eight years, reporting the findings to the relevant Senate and House committees.

Legislative Activity

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1 earlier action
SenateIntro Referral Latest Action

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. (text: CR S861-862)

Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee

February 11, 2025

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SenateIntro Referral

Introduced in Senate

February 11, 2025

SenateIntro Referral

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry. (text: CR S861-862)

Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry Committee

February 11, 2025

Floor Debate

2 members

What members said about S. 507 on the floor

2 Republicans
John Thune
Sen. John ThuneR-SD · Feb 11, 2025

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Record
John Barrasso
Sen. John BarrassoR-WY · Feb 11, 2025

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Record

Bill Text

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Introduced in SenateIssued February 11, 2025

II

119th CONGRESS

1st Session

S. 507

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

February 11, 2025

Mr. Thune (for himself and Mr. Warnock) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry

A BILL

To enhance the participation of precision agriculture in the United States, and for other purposes.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Promoting Precision Agriculture Act of 2025 .

2.

Definitions

In this Act:

(1)

Advanced wireless communications technology

The term advanced wireless communications technology means advanced technology that contributes to mobile (5G or beyond) networks, next-generation Wi-Fi networks, or other future networks using other technologies, regardless of whether the network is operating on an exclusive licensed, shared licensed, or unlicensed frequency band.

(2)

Artificial intelligence

The term artificial intelligence has the meaning given the term in section 238(g) of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (Public Law 115–232; 10 U.S.C. note prec. 4061).

(3)

Foreign adversary

The term foreign adversary means any foreign government or foreign nongovernment person engaged in a long-term pattern or serious instances of conduct significantly adverse to the national security of the United States, or security and safety of United States persons.

(4)

Precision agriculture

The term precision agriculture means managing, tracking, or reducing crop or livestock production inputs, including seed, feed, fertilizer, chemicals, water, time, and such other inputs as the Secretary determines to be appropriate, at a heightened level of spatial and temporal granularity to improve efficiencies, reduce waste, and maintain environmental quality.

(5)

Precision agriculture equipment

The term precision agriculture equipment means any equipment or technology that directly contributes to a reduction in, or improved efficiency of, inputs used in crop or livestock production, including—

(A)

global positioning system-based or geospatial mapping;

(B)

satellite or aerial imagery;

(C)

yield monitors;

(D)

soil mapping;

(E)

sensors for gathering data on crop, soil, and livestock conditions;

(F)

Internet of Things and technology that relies on edge and cloud computing;

(G)

data management software and advanced analytics;

(H)

network connectivity products and solutions, including public and private wireless networks;

(I)

global positioning system guidance, auto-steer systems, autonomous fleeting, and other machine-to-machine operations;

(J)

variable rate technology for applying inputs, such as section control; and

(K)

any other technology that leads to a reduction in, or improves efficiency of, crop and livestock production inputs, which may include—

(i)

seed;

(ii)

feed;

(iii)

fertilizer;

(iv)

chemicals;

(v)

water;

(vi)

time;

(vii)

fuel;

(viii)

emissions; and

(ix)

such other inputs as the Secretary determines to be appropriate.

(6)

Secretary

The term Secretary means the Secretary of Agriculture.

(7)

Trusted

The term trusted means, with respect to a provider of advanced communications service or a supplier of communications equipment or service, that the Secretary has determined that the provider or supplier is not owned by, controlled by, or subject to the influence of, a foreign adversary.

(8)

Voluntary consensus standards development organization

The term voluntary consensus standards development organization means an organization that develops standards in a process that meets the principles for the development of voluntary consensus standards (as defined in the document of the Office of Management and Budget entitled Federal Participation in the Development and Use of Voluntary Consensus Standards and in Conformity Assessment Activities (OMB Circular A–119)).

3.

Purposes

The purposes of this Act are—

(1)

to enhance the participation of precision agriculture in the United States; and

(2)

to promote United States leadership in voluntary consensus standards development organizations that set standards for precision agriculture.

4.

Interconnectivity standards for precision agriculture

(a)

In general

Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in consultation with the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the Federal Communications Commission, shall—

(1)

develop voluntary, consensus-based, private sector-led interconnectivity standards, guidelines, and best practices for precision agriculture that will promote economies of scale and ease the burden of the adoption of precision agriculture; and

(2)

in carrying out paragraph (1)—

(A)

coordinate with relevant public and trusted private sector stakeholders and other relevant industry organizations, including voluntary consensus standards development organizations; and

(B)

consult with sector-specific agencies, other appropriate agencies, and State and local governments.

(b)

Considerations

The Secretary, in carrying out subsection (a), shall, in consultation with the Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the Federal Communications Commission, consider—

(1)

the evolving demands of precision agriculture;

(2)

the connectivity needs of precision agriculture equipment;

(3)

the cybersecurity challenges facing precision agriculture, including cybersecurity threats for agriculture producers and agriculture supply chains;

(4)

the impact of advanced wireless communications technology on precision agriculture; and

(5)

the impact of artificial intelligence on precision agriculture.

5.

GAO assessment of precision agriculture standards

(a)

Study

Not later than 1 year after the Secretary develops standards under section 4, and every 2 years thereafter for the following 8 years, the Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct a study that assesses those standards, including the extent to which those standards, as applicable—

(1)

are voluntary;

(2)

were developed in coordination with relevant industry organizations, including voluntary consensus standards development organizations; and

(3)

have successfully encouraged the adoption of precision agriculture.

(b)

Report

The Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry of the Senate and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology and the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives a report that summarizes the findings of each study conducted under subsection (a).