Biosecurity Modernization and Innovation Act

Key Points

• Companies that make or sell synthetic DNA must verify who is buying it and why before completing a sale, including orders made on benchtop DNA-printing machines.
• The Commerce Department will build and maintain a list of high-risk genetic sequences, and companies must check every order against it before selling.
• The rules cover not just big DNA synthesis factories but also smaller benchtop machines that let people generate genetic material on their own, as long as those machines are sold to outside users.
• If a company reasonably believes a buyer might misuse a high-risk sequence, it must notify the government, and it must keep sales records for at least five years.
• Companies that break these rules can be fined up to $750,000 per violation, but they get a 30-day window to fix the problem before the government can sue them.
• States generally cannot pass their own separate versions of these specific screening rules, though state laws on consumer protection, data privacy, and public health are still allowed.