[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 128 (Tuesday, July 25, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H3918-H3919]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
NTIA POLICY AND CYBERSECURITY COORDINATION ACT
Mr. LATTA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill
(H.R. 1345) to amend the National Telecommunications and Information
Administration Organization Act to establish the Office of Policy
Development and Cybersecurity, and for other purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 1345
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``NTIA Policy and
Cybersecurity Coordination Act''.
SEC. 2. POLICY DEVELOPMENT AND CYBERSECURITY.
(a) Office of Policy Development and Cybersecurity.--Part A
of the National Telecommunications and Information
Administration Organization Act (47 U.S.C. 901 et seq.) is
amended by adding at the end the following:
``SEC. 106. OFFICE OF POLICY DEVELOPMENT AND CYBERSECURITY.
``(a) Establishment.--There shall be within the NTIA an
office to be known as the Office of Policy Development and
Cybersecurity (in this section referred to as the `Office').
``(b) Associate Administrator.--The head of the Office
shall be an Associate Administrator for Policy Development
and Cybersecurity (in this section referred to as the
`Associate Administrator'), who shall report to the Assistant
Secretary.
``(c) Duties.--
``(1) In general.--The Associate Administrator shall
oversee and conduct national communications and information
policy analysis and development for the internet and
communications technologies.
``(2) Particular duties.--In carrying out paragraph (1),
the Associate Administrator shall--
``(A) develop, analyze, and advocate for market-based
policies that promote innovation, competition, consumer
access, digital inclusion, workforce development, and
economic growth in the communications, media, and technology
markets;
``(B) conduct studies, as delegated by the Assistant
Secretary or required by Congress, on how individuals in the
United States access and use the internet, wireline and
wireless telephony, mass media, other digital services, and
video services;
``(C) coordinate transparent, consensus-based,
multistakeholder processes to create guidance for and to
support the development and implementation of cybersecurity
and privacy policies with respect to the internet and other
communications networks;
``(D) promote increased collaboration between security
researchers and providers of communications services and
software system developers;
``(E) perform such duties as the Assistant Secretary
considers appropriate relating to the program for preventing
future vulnerabilities established under section 8(a) of the
Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act of 2019 (47
U.S.C. 1607(a));
``(F) advocate for policies that promote the security and
resilience to cybersecurity incidents of communications
networks while fostering innovation, including policies that
promote secure communications network supply chains;
``(G) at the direction of the Assistant Secretary, present
security of the digital economy and infrastructure and
cybersecurity policy efforts before the Commission, Congress,
and elsewhere;
``(H) provide advice and assistance to the Assistant
Secretary in carrying out the policy responsibilities of the
NTIA with respect to cybersecurity policy matters, including
the evaluation of the impact of cybersecurity matters pending
before the Commission, other Federal agencies, and Congress;
``(I) in addition to the duties described in subparagraph
(H), perform such other duties regarding the policy
responsibilities of the NTIA with respect to cybersecurity
policy matters as the Assistant Secretary considers
appropriate;
``(J) develop policies to accelerate innovation and
commercialization with respect to advances in technological
understanding of communications technologies;
``(K) identify barriers to trust, security, innovation, and
commercialization with respect to communications
technologies, including access to capital and other
resources, and ways to overcome such barriers;
``(L) provide public access to relevant data, research, and
technical assistance on innovation and commercialization with
respect to communications technologies, consistent with the
protection of classified information;
``(M) strengthen collaboration on and coordination of
policies relating to innovation and commercialization with
respect to communications technologies, including policies
focused on the needs of small businesses and rural
communities--
``(i) within the Department of Commerce;
``(ii) between the Department of Commerce and State
government agencies, as appropriate; and
``(iii) between the Department of Commerce and the
Commission or any other Federal agency the Assistant
Secretary determines to be necessary; and
``(N) solicit and consider feedback from small and rural
communications service providers, as appropriate.''.
(b) Transitional Rules.--
(1) Redesignation of associate administrator; continuation
of service.--
(A) Redesignation.--The position of Associate Administrator
for Policy Analysis and Development at the NTIA is hereby
redesignated as the position of Associate Administrator for
Policy Development and Cybersecurity.
(B) Continuation of service.--The individual serving as
Associate Administrator for Policy Analysis and Development
at the NTIA on the date of the enactment of this Act shall
become, as of such date, the Associate Administrator for
Policy Development and Cybersecurity.
(2) NTIA defined.--In this subsection, the term ``NTIA''
means the National Telecommunications and Information
Administration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Ohio (Mr. Latta) and the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Ohio.
General Leave
Mr. LATTA. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous material in the Record on the bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Ohio?
There was no objection.
Mr. LATTA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1345, the NTIA Policy and
Cybersecurity Coordination Act, led by the gentleman from Utah's Third
District and the gentlewoman from Pennsylvania's Seventh District.
As our world becomes more increasingly digitized and interconnected,
the importance of robust cybersecurity measures cannot be overstated.
Cybersecurity threats, whether originating from State actors, criminal
organizations, or malicious hackers, pose significant risks to our
national security, economy, and the privacy of our citizens.
The increasing frequency and sophistication of cyberattacks
underscore the urgency of addressing this ever-evolving challenge. The
NTIA Policy and Cybersecurity Coordination Act bolsters our Nation's
cybersecurity posture by strengthening the coordination between the
National Telecommunications and Information Administration, or NTIA,
and other relevant Federal agency.
The bill renames the existing NTIA Office of Policy and Analysis and
Development to the Office of Policy Development and Cybersecurity and
codifies the existing activities of the office.
H.R. 1345 seeks to promote effective information sharing,
collaboration, and response efforts established in the Secure and
Trusted Communications Networks Act.
Moreover, the legislation facilitates public-private partnerships to
develop and implement cybersecurity policies related to the
communication networks.
By encouraging collaboration between government agencies and
stakeholders, we can work together to address cyber threats and
vulnerabilities more effectively.
This bipartisan legislation passed out of the Energy and Commerce
Committee by a vote of 44-0, and I urge my colleagues to support H.R.
1345.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1345, the NTIA Policy and
Cybersecurity Coordination Act.
Protecting our Nation's communications networks is of vital
importance
[[Page H3919]]
to our national security. This is particularly important now when a
significant amount of our country's economic and social activity has
moved online, and consumers are connecting more devices to these
networks. We must build in safeguards to increase the safety of
communications networks to protect Americans while also promoting
innovation and competition.
H.R. 1345 will help us achieve these goals. This legislation
authorizes the existing Office of Policy Analysis and Development at
the NTIA and renames it as the Office of Policy Development and
Cybersecurity. It also codifies responsibilities of NTIA in
administering parts of the Secure and Trusted Communications Network
Act and requires the office to coordinate and develop policy
initiatives to enhance cybersecurity efforts with respect to our
communications networks.
The office will also be tasked with developing and analyzing policies
that promote innovation, competition, digital inclusion, and workforce
development in the communications, media, and technology markets.
I thank Representatives Wild and Curtis for their bipartisan work on
this bill, which will ensure that there is a firm foundation within the
Federal Government to oversee the security of our Nation's
communications networks.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this legislation that
unanimously advanced out of the Energy and Commerce Committee early
this year, and I reserve the balance of my time.
{time} 1715
Mr. LATTA. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the
gentleman from Utah (Mr. Curtis), the sponsor of the legislation.
Mr. CURTIS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of my bill, the NTIA
Policy and Cybersecurity Coordination Act. This bill would streamline
the development of cybersecurity policy at the National
Telecommunications and Information Administration, NTIA, through the
establishment of an office of policy development and cybersecurity.
This office would work with industry and stakeholders to recommend
the cybersecurity practices and policies of the internet and
communications technology sectors. The office of policy development and
cybersecurity would also carry out the communications supply chain risk
information partnership to facilitate information sharing on
cybersecurity risks to small and rural communities.
State and nonstate actors are working overtime to find
vulnerabilities in our networks and infrastructure. We must work even
harder to ensure Americans are protected from cyberattacks.
Mr. Speaker, I thank Representative Wild for joining me on this bill
in the House and Senator Hickenlooper for leading in the Senate.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of this bill.
Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I think this is an important bill, and I
urge everyone to support it on both sides of the aisle.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. LATTA. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the
gentleman from Idaho (Mr. Fulcher).
Mr. FULCHER. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1345, the NTIA
Policy and Cybersecurity Coordination Act. This bill would promote
collaboration between security research and industry development,
preventing and mitigating future software vulnerabilities in
communications networks.
It is also important to codify NTIA's administering of information
sharing established in the Secure and Trusted Communications Network
Act. The NTIA is assigned with coordinating policy related to the
cybersecurity of communications networks.
These attacks on communications networks include those we have all
heard about: unauthorized access; distributed denial of service; man-
in-the-middle attacks, where communications traffic is intercepted; and
code attacks, where malicious code can be passed to a server to make it
vulnerable. This is a serious problem.
Like the Secure and Trusted Communications Network Act, H.R. 1345
passed with unanimous, bipartisan support out of the Energy and
Commerce Committee.
We need to address cyberattacks in a more effective and coordinated
fashion to go after the bad actors attacking America's communications
networks.
I appreciate the good work of my colleagues, Representatives John
Curtis and Susan Wild, and I strongly support this bill.
Mr. LATTA. Mr. Speaker, as the gentleman just stated, this bill
encourages collaboration between government agencies and stakeholders
so that we can work together to address cyber threats and
vulnerabilities more effectively.
Mr. Speaker, I urge passage by the House, and I yield back the
balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Dunn). The question is on the motion
offered by the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Latta) that the House suspend
the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1345.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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