Recently, as Chairman of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, I announced the Committee subpoenaed fourteen agencies from the outgoing Biden-Harris administrationย in connection with the origins of COVID-19 and taxpayer-fundedย gain-of-function research.
ย
These subpoenas were issued under the Committeeโs rules in force at the time, without objection from the minority. Committee rules unanimously adopted for the 119th Congress provide the Chairman authority to issue such subpoenas on my own directive. Theย subpoenas, sent on January 13, 2025, build upon the Committeeโsย joint investigationย of national security threats posed by high-risk biological research and technology in the U.S. and abroad. The Committee held bipartisan hearingsย examining oversightย of taxpayer-funded high-risk virus research, the first full Senate Committeeย hearing on the origins of COVID-19, and overwhelmingly passed myย Risky Research Review Act.
ย
The list of agencies includes the National Institutes of Health, Department of State, United States Agency for International Development, Department of Homeland Security, Department of Health and Human Services, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Defense, Department of Justice, National Security Agency, Central Intelligence Agency, National Security Council, Department of Energy, Department of Agriculture, and Office of Science and Technology Policy.ย
ย
You can read more about our effortsย HERE.
