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By: FEDweek StaffPresident Trump has signed into law (P.L. 115-278) a measure creating a new cybersecurity and infrastructure security agency within DHS to better “work with partners at all levels of government, and from the private and non-profit sectors, to share information and build greater trust in order to make our cyber and physical infrastructure more secure,” according to a congressional report on the measure.
The law expands the existing National Protection and Programs Directorate and renames it as the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency “so it can more effectively carryout the existing authorities provided in law,” the report says. One division will focus on cybersecurity and the other on infrastructure security.
“This bill provides the necessary overarching structure for DHS to carry out its cybersecurity mission while also providing intradepartmental flexibility to best allow DHS to execute its mission in the cybersecurity and infrastructure security space. The redesignation and elevation of these missions within DHS will better allow DHS to carry out its operational mission and recruit the best workforce to achieve this mission,” it says.
The new agency will be responsible for leading cybersecurity and infrastructure security programs, operations, and associated policy; coordinating consultation and collaboration among DHS divisions; and for developing and carrying out strategic plans and risk assessments.
