[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 53 (Thursday, April 18, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E492-E493]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             CYBER INTELLIGENCE SHARING AND PROTECTION ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                            HON. MIKE ROGERS

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                       Wednesday, April 17, 2013

       The House in Committee of the Whole House on the state of 
     the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 624) to 
     provide for the sharing of certain cyber threat intelligence 
     and cyber threat information between the intelligence 
     community and cybersecurity entities, and for other purposes:

  Mr. ROGERS of Michigan. Madam Chair, I submit the following letters.

         Congress of the United States, House of Representatives, 
           Committee on the Judiciary,
                                   Washington, DC, April 10, 2013.
     Hon. Mike Rogers,
     Chairman, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, 
         Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Rogers: I am writing concerning H.R. 624, the 
     ``Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act,'' which is 
     scheduled for consideration in your Committee today. This 
     bill contains provisions that fall within the Rule X 
     jurisdiction of the Committee on the Judiciary.
       As a result of your having made mutually agreed-upon 
     changes to the provisions in question, and in order to 
     expedite the House's consideration of H.R. 624, the Committee 
     on the Judiciary will not assert its jurisdictional claim 
     over this bill by seeking a sequential referral. The 
     Committee takes this action with our mutual understanding 
     that by foregoing consideration of H.R. 624 at this time, we 
     do not waive any jurisdiction over subject matter contained 
     in this or similar legislation, and that our Committee will 
     be appropriately consulted and involved as the bill or 
     similar legislation moves forward so that we may address any 
     remaining issues in our jurisdiction. Our Committee also 
     reserves the right to seek appointment of an appropriate 
     number of conferees to any House-Senate conference involving 
     this or similar legislation, and requests your support for 
     any such request.
       I would appreciate your response to this letter confirming 
     this understanding with respect to H.R. 624, and would ask 
     that a copy of our exchange of letters on this matter be 
     included during floor consideration.
           Sincerely,
                                                    Bob Goodlatte,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

         House of Representatives, Permanent Select Committee on 
           Intelligence,
                                   Washington, DC, April 11, 2013.
     Hon. Bob Goodlatte,
     Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary, House of 
         Representatives, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Goodlatte: Thank you for your letter 
     regarding H.R. 624, the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and 
     Protection Act. As you noted, elements of the bill fall 
     within the jurisdiction of the Committee on the Judiciary. As 
     you also noted, mutually agreed upon changes to the 
     provisions in question were adopted by the Permanent Select 
     Committee on Intelligence during its consideration of the 
     bill, and we will be glad to continue to work with you on 
     these provisions. We will also support the request of the 
     Committee on the Judiciary for conferees in any conference 
     that may occur on the bill.
       I appreciate your willingness to forego consideration of 
     the bill in the interest of expediting this legislation for 
     floor consideration. I acknowledge that by agreeing to waive 
     consideration of the bill, the Committee on the Judiciary 
     does not waive any jurisdiction it may have over provisions 
     of the bill or any matters under your jurisdiction. I will 
     include a copy of your letter and this response in our 
     Committee's report on H.R. 624 and the Congressional Record 
     during consideration of the legislation on the House floor.
       Thank you for your assistance in this matter.
           Sincerely,
                                                      Mike Rogers,
                                                         Chairman.

[[Page E493]]

     
                                  ____
         House of Representatives, Committee on Homeland Security
                                   Washington, DC, April 11, 2013.
     Hon. Mike Rogers,
     Chairman, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, 
         Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Rogers: On April 10, 2013, the House 
     Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence ordered H.R. 624, 
     the ``Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act'', 
     reported favorably to the House with certain provisions in 
     the legislation that fall within the Rule X jurisdiction of 
     the Committee on Homeland Security. Specifically, this 
     legislation identifies the Department of Homeland Security's 
     National Cybersecurity and Communications Integrations Center 
     (NCCIC) as a principal entity for sharing cybersecurity 
     information with the Federal government and amongst 
     stakeholders.
       The NCCIC partners with all Federal departments and 
     agencies, State, local, Tribal, and territorial governments, 
     as well as private sector and international entities. The 
     Center works with critical infrastructure owners and 
     operators to reduce risk, coordinates national response 
     efforts to significant cyber incidents, and shares 
     cybersecurity threat and vulnerability assessment information 
     throughout the Federal government. These actions, along with 
     the cybersecurity information provided through the NCCIC, 
     trigger the jurisdiction of the Committee on Homeland 
     Security over functions of the Department of Homeland 
     Security relating to integration, analysis, and dissemination 
     of homeland security information.
       In the interest of permitting your committee to proceed 
     expeditiously with consideration of this important 
     legislation, the Committee on Homeland Security will not 
     request a sequential referral over provisions within our 
     jurisdiction. However, I do so with the mutual understanding 
     that the Committee's jurisdictional claims over subject 
     matters contained in this and similar legislation are in no 
     way diminished or altered. I request that you urge the 
     Speaker to name members of this Committee to any conference 
     committee for consideration of provisions that fall within 
     the jurisdiction of the Committee on Homeland Security in the 
     House-Senate conference on this bill or similar legislation.
       Finally, I ask that you place this letter and your response 
     into the committee report on H.R. 624 and into the 
     Congressional Record during consideration of the measure on 
     the House floor. Thank you for your consideration of this 
     matter.
           Sincerely,
                                                Michael T. McCaul,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

         House of Representatives, Permanent Select Committee on 
           Intelligence,
                                   Washington, DC, April 12, 2013.
     Hon. Michael T. McCaul,
     Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman McCaul: This responds to your letter dated 
     April 11, 2013 concerning H.R. 624 the Cyber Intelligence 
     Sharing and Protection Act (CISPA). Specifically, you noted 
     the provision contained in the legislation relating to the 
     Department of Homeland Security's National Cybersecurity and 
     Communications Integration Center (NCCIC).
       I appreciate your decision to forego requesting referral of 
     H.R. 624 to the House Homeland Security Committee in the 
     interest of expediting floor consideration of this 
     legislation. I also acknowledge that this decision will not 
     diminish or alter the Homeland Security Committee's 
     jurisdictional claims over subject matters contained in this 
     and similar legislation. I will also support your request 
     that the Speaker name members of the Homeland Security 
     Committee to any conference committee for consideration of 
     provisions that fall within the jurisdiction of the Committee 
     on Homeland Security in the House-Senate conference on this 
     bill. Finally, I will include a copy of your letter and this 
     response letter in the Committee's report on H.R. 624 and in 
     the Congressional Record during consideration of H.R. 624 on 
     the House Floor.
           Sincerely,
                                                      Mike Rogers,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

         House of Representatives,
         Committee on Armed Services,
                                   Washington, DC, April 18, 2013.
     Chairman Mike Rogers,
     House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, House of 
         Representatives, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Rogers: I am writing to raise concerns 
     relating to amendment #42 to the Cyber Intelligence and 
     Sharing Protection Act (CISPA), H.R. 624, as modified and 
     introduced by you, Chairman McCaul, and Ranking Members 
     Ruppersberger and Thompson.
       First, I am concerned about the possible impact of this 
     amendment on current cyber threat information sharing 
     programs with the Department of Defense (DOD). Based on the 
     short amount of time we have had to review and comment on the 
     amendment, we have not had an opportunity to fully assess the 
     potential effects on DOD activities. In particular, we must 
     ensure that there is no ``chilling effect'' on sharing 
     between the Defense Industrial Base and DOD that is so 
     critical to our national security.
       Second, I am also seeking to clarify the intent behind a 
     specific change proposed by the modified amendment. The 
     amendment would alter the current text, which states that a 
     cybersecurity provider may share cyber threat information 
     ``with the express consent of a protected entity'' with any 
     entity, ``including, if specifically designated, the Federal 
     Government.'' The amendment would change the reference from 
     ``Federal Government'' to the Departments of Homeland 
     Security and Justice. I seek to confirm that the intent of 
     the amendment is not to preclude sharing of cyber threat 
     information with the Department of Defense when a 
     cybersecurity provider has received the consent of a 
     protected entity.
       More generally, we must ensure that there is no time delay 
     or other obstructions to passing cyber threat information 
     critical for our national defense to DOD.
       I am seeking a commitment from you to work with the Armed 
     Services Committee to determine if any further changes to the 
     legislation might be needed, and if possible incorporate 
     those changes when this bill is conferenced with the Senate.
           Sincerely,
                                        Howard P. ``Buck'' McKeon,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

         House of Representatives, Permanent Select Committee on 
           Intelligence,
                                   Washington, DC, April 18, 2013.
     Hon. Buck McKeon,
     Chairman, Committee on Armed Services, Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. Chairman: This responds to your letter about an 
     amendment I co-sponsored with Chairman McCaul, and Ranking 
     Members Ruppersberger and Thompson during floor consideration 
     of H.R. 624, The Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection 
     Act (CISPA).
       I understand you have concerns about a possible ``chilling 
     effect'' of this amendment on current cyber threat 
     information sharing programs with the Department of Defense, 
     and about changing the reference to ``Federal Government'' to 
     the Departments of Homeland Security and Justice. I confirm 
     that the amendment is not intended to, and does not, preclude 
     sharing of cyber threat information with the Department of 
     Defense when a cybersecurity provider has received the 
     consent of a protected entity.
       Additionally, I understand your concerns about the 
     application of (b)(3)(A) and section 941(c)(3) of the 
     National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013. I 
     commit to working with you in an effort to identify a 
     mutually agreeable approach to this matter.
           Sincerely,
                                                      Mike Rogers,
     Chairman.

                          ____________________