Legislative Activity Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards Authorization Bill The House Homeland Security Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection and Security Technologies will hold a hearing to discuss the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards Authorization and Accountability Act of 2014 (H.R. 4007) on Thursday, February 26. This bill, introduced by Subcommittee Chairman Patrick Meehan (R-PA), would provide a … Continue Reading
Legislative Branch Activity Data Breach Issues Last week, three Congressional Committees – the House Energy and Commerce Committee, Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, and the Senate Judiciary Committee – held hearings that explored the recent data breaches at Target and Neiman Marcus that compromised the financial data for millions of customers. Officials from … Continue Reading
Legislative Branch Activity Data Breach This week, several Congressional Committees will hold a number of hearings focused on the recent data breaches at Target, Neiman Marcus and other large companies that compromised the financial information of millions of customers. The hearings will focus on how to prevent future data breaches and the appropriate course of … Continue Reading
Executive and Legislative Branch Activity National Security Agency (NSA) On January 17, President Obama announced a series of changes to the NSA surveillance programs that have sparked controversy around the world since they were revealed by Edward Snowden’s leaks. Congress is expected to legislatively weigh-in on the NSA debate. It remains unclear what action Congress … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Homeland Security Nominations The Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee held a nomination hearing for President Barack Obama’s nominee to become the next Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), John Roth. Both Majority and Minority Members of the committee expressed support for Roth’s nomination and along with continued … Continue Reading
Executive and Legislative Branch Activity Defense Authorization, Budget And the Sequester The Fiscal 2014 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) (S.1197) is expected to come to the Senate floor this week. Speculation is high the Senate debate will be truncated in order to conclude before the Thanksgiving congressional recess. There is growing consensus the second round … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity HSGAC to Vote on Jeh Johnson Nomination On Wednesday, November 20, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee will vote on the nomination of Jeh Johnson to be the next Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Both Chairman Tom Carper (D-DE) and Ranking Member Tom Coburn (R-OK) support his nomination, … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity This Week’s Hearings: Wednesday, November 13: The House Homeland Security Committee will hold a hearing at 10:00 am titled “Cyber Side-Effects: How Secure is the Personal Information Entered into the Flawed Healthcare.gov?” Thursday, November 14: At 10:00 am, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee will hold a hearing regarding threats to … Continue Reading
Executive and Legislative Branch Activity Defense Authorization, Budget And the Sequester The Fiscal 2014 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) (S.1197) is expected to come to the floor on Wednesday, November 13. The Military Justice Improvement Act (S. 967) – a bill to address military sexual assaults that has 46 Senators supporting it – is expected … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Cybersecurity Legislation Last week, the House Homeland Security Committee approved two cybersecurity bills by a voice vote – the Critical Infrastructure Research and Development Advancement Act of 2013 (H.R. 2952) and the Homeland Security Cybersecurity Boots-on-the-Ground Act (H.R. 3107). It is unclear how quickly these bills will be considered on the House floor, … Continue Reading
Executive and Legislative Branch Activity Budget Last week’s successful eleventh-hour Senate-led bipartisan proposal (H.R. 2775) to raise the debt ceiling (until February 7) and end the government shutdown, by essentially funding the federal government at FY 2013 numbers (through January 15), also included a provision to establish a budget conference committee to reconcile the differing … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Cybersecurity Legislation Senate Intelligence Committee Vice Chairman Saxby Chambliss (R-GA) stated that the committee is close to introducing a cybersecurity information sharing bill that will be the Senate equivalent of the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act that the House passed in April. The bill would establish a mechanism within the Department of … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity U.S. Department of Homeland Security Nomination Hearings On Tuesday, October 1, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee will consider Obama administration nominees for U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of the General Counsel and Under Secretary of Homeland Security. The committee is expected to report out the two nominees to … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity U.S. Department of Homeland Security Nomination Hearings Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Thomas Carper (D-DE) and Ranking Member Tom Coburn (R-OK) continue to criticize the outstanding number of open leadership slots at the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Last week, the committee held a hearing to consider nominees to … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Senate Cybersecurity Legislation Although the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee has already completed its work on a cybersecurity bill this Congress, many stakeholders are waiting to see what the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee is planning for its cybersecurity legislation. At a hearing last week, Chairman Tom Carper (D-DE) laid … Continue Reading
LEGISLATIVE ACTIVITY DHS 10-year Anniversary As the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) hits the 10-year mark, the House and Senate are reviewing the progress and remaining challenges facing the Department since its inception. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee members from both sides of the aisle have acknowledged that Congress needs to reduce … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity House Cybersecurity Legislation The House Homeland Security Committee is currently circulating a revised draft of the National Cybersecurity and Critical Protection Act (NCCIP), the committee’s cybersecurity legislation. The bill would codify many of the current cybersecurity roles of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), including the National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center … Continue Reading
Executive and Legislative Branch Activity Egypt The State Department continues to call for an end to perceived arbitrary arrests in Egypt. Despite reported calls in Egypt by Islamists and the opposition for U.S. Ambassador Ann Patterson to leave Cairo, the State Department maintains its support for the embattled veteran Foreign Service officer. Meanwhile, Deputy Secretary … Continue Reading
Legislative Branch Activity Cybersecurity Legislation The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee is expected to mark up a bipartisan cybersecurity bill before the end of this month. A draft of the bill is currently being circulated and contains provisions that would codify the role of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) to continue … Continue Reading
Legislative Branch Activity Defense Budget Last week, Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel sent a letter to the Senate Armed Services Committee in which he “strongly” opposed the $52 billion sequester cuts to the Defense Department’s FY 2014 Budget. He particularly cited risks to U.S. military readiness and technological superiority. Secretary Hagel noted the adverse effects … Continue Reading
Legislative Branch Activity Cybersecurity Legislation The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee is expected to mark up a bipartisan cybersecurity bill drafted by Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) and Ranking Member John Thune (R-SD) by the end of this month. The bill will be focused on defining industry standards for critical infrastructure and strengthening cybersecurity … Continue Reading
Legislative Branch Activity National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) The Senate Armed Services Committee filed its bill, S. 1197, on Thursday, June 20. Chairman Carl Levin (D-MI) and Ranking Member James Inhofe (R-OK) would like to bring the bill to the Senate floor in July, but that remains uncertain at this time. Defense Appropriations Last week, … Continue Reading
Legislative Branch Activity Cybersecurity Legislation In the Senate, the committees with jurisdiction over cybersecurity issues continue to work on drafting legislation that will be introduced in the coming weeks, including the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, the Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee, and the Senate Intelligence Committee. Previous efforts to pass cybersecurity … Continue Reading
Legislative Activity Comprehensive Immigration Reform This week, the Senate will continue to consider its comprehensive immigration reform bill – the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act (S. 744) – though an amendment introduced by Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) regarding border security may hold up the process. Senator Cornyn’s amendment would add requirements to … Continue Reading
