America’s Living Library Act

Key Points

• This bill creates a 10-year pilot program to collect and sequence the DNA of animals, plants, fungi, and microbes found in National Parks. It starts at 5 parks within 180 days and expands to 25 total parks within 2 years, building a massive public genomic database of American biodiversity.
• All physical samples must remain in the United States, and early access to the genomic data for AI development is restricted to U.S.-organized entities that are not owned or controlled by any foreign entity of concern—a national security safeguard for American biological data.
• The program authorizes up to $334 million over fiscal years 2027–2031, with funding split among the USGS, the Smithsonian, the Department of Agriculture, and the NIH's National Center for Biotechnology Information for sequencing, sample storage, and data management.
• The bill requires consultation with Indian Tribes throughout implementation and directs the Secretary to engage in tribal consultation in accordance with Department policies and applicable law.
• Private biotech companies can donate equipment like DNA sequencing tools, but the bill includes conflict-of-interest vetting. A future subscription model may also be developed so organizations can pay for database access based on their size and usage.