Reps. Lofgren and Thornberry Reintroduce Cybersecurity Legislation
January 6, 2005
Media Contact: Heather Wong, 202.225.3072
Reps. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) and Mac Thornberry (R-TX) today reintroduced bipartisan legislation to create an Assistant Secretary for Cybersecurity position within the Department of Homeland Security's Information Analysis and Infrastructures Protection Directorate. The legislation, also known as "the Department of Homeland Security Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2005" was first introduced in the second session of the 108th Congress. The establishment of a new Assistant Secretary position was ultimately approved by the House as part of H.R. 10, the House-passed version of last year's intelligence reform bill, but was not included in the final intelligence reform legislation approved by Congress and signed by the President.
"It is imperative that Congress work with a sense of urgency to revisit this bill to elevate the position of Assistant Secretary for Cybersecurity, so we can make sure that the top government cybersecurity personnel has the access and authority to get the job done," said Rep. Lofgren. "The creation of this position will also help protect our physical and converged physical-cyber infrastructures by hopefully putting experts - not bureaucrats- in charge."
Rep. Thornberry said, "At the same time that our Nation is growing more dependent on the reliability of various computer networks, the number of cyber attacks is also growing. Creating an Assistant Secretary is far more than just an organizational change. It is an essential move to assure that cybersecurity is not buried among the many homeland security challenges we face."
If passed, the legislation would allow for the Assistant Secretary to have primary authority within the Department for all cybersecurity-related critical infrastructure protection programs of the Department, including policy formulation and program management.
The legislation touts strong support from the technology, education, and financial sectors.
Reps. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) and Mac Thornberry (R-TX) today reintroduced bipartisan legislation to create an Assistant Secretary for Cybersecurity position within the Department of Homeland Security's Information Analysis and Infrastructures Protection Directorate. The legislation, also known as "the Department of Homeland Security Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2005" was first introduced in the second session of the 108th Congress. The establishment of a new Assistant Secretary position was ultimately approved by the House as part of H.R. 10, the House-passed version of last year's intelligence reform bill, but was not included in the final intelligence reform legislation approved by Congress and signed by the President.
"It is imperative that Congress work with a sense of urgency to revisit this bill to elevate the position of Assistant Secretary for Cybersecurity, so we can make sure that the top government cybersecurity personnel has the access and authority to get the job done," said Rep. Lofgren. "The creation of this position will also help protect our physical and converged physical-cyber infrastructures by hopefully putting experts - not bureaucrats- in charge."
Rep. Thornberry said, "At the same time that our Nation is growing more dependent on the reliability of various computer networks, the number of cyber attacks is also growing. Creating an Assistant Secretary is far more than just an organizational change. It is an essential move to assure that cybersecurity is not buried among the many homeland security challenges we face."
If passed, the legislation would allow for the Assistant Secretary to have primary authority within the Department for all cybersecurity-related critical infrastructure protection programs of the Department, including policy formulation and program management.
The legislation touts strong support from the technology, education, and financial sectors.
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