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Democrats: Cybersecurity legislation a priority in new Congress
A coalition of leading Senate Democrats said on Wednesday that enacting legislation to better protect the nation's critical computer systems from hackers will be a priority this year.
Senate Republicans blocked a vote on the president's preferred cybersecurity bill last year, warning that it would burden businesses and do little to improve security.
Sens. Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), chairman of the Commerce Committee, Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), chairwoman of the Intelligence Committee, and Tom Carper (D-Del.), the new chairman of the Homeland Security Committee, introduced a resolution on Wednesday stating that gaps in cybersecurity "pose one of the most serious and rapidly growing threats to both the national security and the economy of the United States."
“The new Congress has a real opportunity to reach needed consensus on bipartisan legislation that will strengthen our nation’s cybersecurity,” Rockefeller said in a statement.
Feinstein warned that the "threat of a cyber attack is real, and it is growing."
"Given all that relies on a safe and secure Internet, it is vital that we do what’s necessary to protect ourselves from hackers, cyber thieves, and terrorists," Carper said.
Democrats and the Obama administration last year backed the Cybersecurity Act, which would have set cybersecurity standards for critical infrastructure operators and would have encouraged companies and the government to share information about cyber threats.
Republicans, led by Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), claimed the bill's cybersecurity standards would have been cumbersome and ineffective. Supporters were unable to muster the 60 votes needed to overcome a GOP filibuster.
The White House is now working on an executive order that would encourage companies to meet government cybersecurity standards.
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