The Department of Homeland Security—the federal agency responsible for protecting the country from security threats, including terrorism, disasters, and border issues—would be required to create a formal, agency-wide plan for keeping its research and development work safe from spying, leaks, or unauthorized access, especially when it hires outside contractors to do that research. Separately, a government watchdog agency that audits federal spending and programs would have to check whether DHS is actually following existing rules that require researchers to disclose conflicts of interest, such as funding or ties to foreign governments, and report back on how well DHS is complying. In practice, this mainly affects DHS staff and the contractors and researchers it works with, aiming to reduce the risk that sensitive research gets accessed or influenced by outside parties without anyone knowing.