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Spanberger, Gallagher Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Protect Against Cyber Attacks

Sep 20, 2023
Infrastructure
Press

This Bipartisan Bill Would Require the Secretary of Homeland Security to Develop and Establish a National Risk Management Cycle to Identify Risks to Critical Infrastructure and the Associated Likelihoods, Vulnerabilities, & Consequences of Each Identified Risk

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Representatives Abigail Spanberger (D-VA-07) and Mike Gallagher (R-WI-08) introduced bipartisan legislation to protect against attacks on America’s critical infrastructure.

The National Risk Management Act would strengthen the defense of critical infrastructure sectors by establishing a National Risk Management Cycle. Specifically, the legislation would require the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security to consult with Sector Risk Management Agencies, critical infrastructure owners and operators, the Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, the Assistant to the President for Homeland Security, and the National Cyber Director, to develop and establish a National Risk Management Cycle. This recurring process would identify risks to critical infrastructure and the associated likelihoods, vulnerabilities, and consequences of each identified risk.

“The threats to our national security are increasingly complex. Families, businesses, and communities across our country are vulnerable to sophisticated cyber threats, destabilizing attacks on our critical infrastructure, and foreign interference,” said Spanberger. “Virginians know that these threats are not hypothetical — thousands of our neighbors have experienced the consequences of susceptible critical infrastructure, such as during the Colonial Pipeline attack. I’m proud to join Congressman Mike Gallagher in taking serious steps to strengthen our nation’s defenses against cyberthreats and build more resilient infrastructure.”

“Our adversaries continue to launch cyber attacks against us that cripple our infrastructure, steal our intellectual property, and harm our economy,” said Gallagher. “Establishing a National Risk Management Cycle is basic cyber security hygiene and a common-sense step we can take to ensure our businesses and critical infrastructure are hard targets.”

Click here for bill text.

BACKGROUND

Spanberger has long worked to protect U.S. critical infrastructure. In May 2022, President Biden signed into law Spanberger’s bipartisan, bicameral bill to improve law enforcement’s understanding, measurement, and tracking of cybercrime.

In the wake of the DarkSide attack on the Colonial Pipeline in May 2021, Spanberger urged President Joe Biden to recognize the vulnerabilities revealed by the foreign-based ransomware attack and create an interagency strategy that can increase cybersecurity collaboration between government agencies and the private sector, strengthen protections for American supply chains, and deter hackers from attacking in the future. In October 2021, Spanberger co-led a major bipartisan effort in the U.S. House to protect systemically important critical infrastructure from cyberattacks.

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