Federal Information Security Amendments Act of 2012
Floor Speech
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Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from California?
There was no objection.
Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, cybersecurity threats represent one of the most serious national security and economic challenges we face as a Nation. Whether it's criminal hackers, organized crime, terrorist networks or national states, our Nation is under siege from dangerous cybersecurity threats that grow daily in frequency and sophistication.
It is critical that the Federal Government address cybersecurity threats in a manner that keeps pace with the Nation's growing dependence on technology. The President himself recently stated: ``Cybersecurity is a challenge that we as a government or as a country are not adequately prepared to counter.''
Madam Speaker, it is essential that we, in fact, change that here today.
Current law does not adequately address the nature of today's cybersecurity threats. Since the enactment in 2002 of the Federal Information Security Management Act, or FISMA, it has become a check-the-box compliance activity that all too often has little to do with minimizing security threats, and yet the Government Accountability Office recently found that security incidents among 24 key agencies increased more than 650 percent during the last 5 years.
To address the rising challenge posed by cyberthreats, Ranking Member Cummings and I introduced H.R. 4257, the Federal Information Security Amendments Act of 2012. The bill aims to harness the last decade of technological innovation in securing the Federal information systems. It amends FISMA to move beyond the check-the-box compliance mentality. It enhances the current framework for securing Federal information technology systems.
Our bill calls for automated and continuous monitoring of government information systems. And it ensures that control monitoring finally incorporates regular threat assessment and--Madam Speaker, this is the most important part of what we do--continuous monitoring and constant threat assessments so that never again will we find that the incidents are going up double digits every month in some cases.
The bill also reaffirms the role of the Office of Management and Budget, or OMB, with respect to FISMA, recognizing that the budgetary leverage of the Executive Office of the President is necessary to ensure agencies are focused on effective security of its IT systems.
While our bill does not include new requirements, restrictions, or mandates on private or non-Federal computer systems, H.R. 4257 does highlight the need for stronger public-private partnerships. Through our Web site, keepthewebopen.com, our bill has been vetted by the American people. It has also received strong support from cybersecurity experts and industry, including the Information Technology Industry Council and the Business Software Alliance.
I'd like to thank my ranking member, Mr. Cummings, for a one-on-one equal partnership with me in the efforts to address the growing threat for cybersecurity. He has led the way on his side of the aisle, and I have been honored to serve on my side. We have encouraged all Members to support this timely legislation. We recognize that some things are too important to be partisan. This certainly is one of them.
I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. ISSA. I thank the gentleman. I do share those concerns and appreciate the gentleman's work on this.
Proper organization of the executive branch is essential to the successful long-term management of technology, and particularly cybersecurity.
This policy is going to require additional work. FISMA is not the end but, in fact, a starting point; and I look forward to working with the gentleman to make sure that as we work with the executive branch, including OMB, that we get it right and we keep the focus where it needs to be on all the agencies and bringing them together.
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Mr. ISSA. I thank the gentleman. And yes, we did. Your leadership on cybersecurity matters, including FISMA reform, have been essential.
When you and I served on the Select Intelligence Committee, I recognized that you put more time and effort into the behind-the-door work than any of us. And, in fact, you and I share some of the challenges that we faced with the DNI and other earlier organizations.
But I share with you that your suggestions on how we can, in fact, find single-point accountability in future legislation, in concert with this administration, is essential. I look forward to working with you on exactly that. I know of no other partner I could have on the other side of the aisle that is more prepared to do it, and I thank the gentleman.
Mr. LANGEVIN. I thank the gentleman for that. In that spirit, I'd like to encourage the gentleman to continue in this open and bipartisan fashion. I'd like to ask if you would be interested in working together on such subsequent legislation, along with Mr. Cummings and Mr. Connolly, who have been so involved and thoughtful on this issue.
I believe that such legislation should include strong, centralized oversight to protect our Nation's critical infrastructure, including budgetary oversight powers, while remaining accountable to Congress.
Mr. ISSA. I couldn't agree with the gentleman more. Your work with our staff has been essential. I look forward to doing exactly that, and I think we have to have that ongoing effort to get to there.
I saw the ranking member's head also shaking. I know that we will both look forward to working with you on a bipartisan basis.
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Mr. ISSA. Madam Speaker, in closing, I urge all Members to support the passage of this bill, H.R. 4257, as amended. I want to make one closing statement.
Often we talk about cybersecurity, and people think just about the Internet. We sit here in a room that is essentially windowless. I've been in this room when the lights are out. It is very, very dark. We would have a hard time finding our way out. Yet the very essence of keeping the grid up requires computers to talk to each other. Our phone systems, our lights, our power, our sewage, our water all depend today on interoperable computer systems that span the entire country and, in many cases, the entire world.
So, as people realize the government-to-government relationship and, particularly, the public-private partnerships that this bill encourages and asks the Office of Management and Budget to assure occur, we are doing so, of course, in order to maintain a reliable Internet; but much more importantly, the fundamentals of the very electricity that powers the Internet must be maintained and protected. I believe we've gone a long way today in the passage of this bill. I urge its passage.
I thank the gentleman from Maryland for his leadership on this important matter.
I yield back the balance of my time.
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