Protecting Cyberspace as a National Asset Act of 2010
Latest action. Referred to the subcommitteeA smaller panel inside a standing committee with jurisdiction over a slice of its subject matter. Most hearings and the first markup usually happen here.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) on Higher Education, Lifelong Learning, and Competitiveness.
Protecting Cyberspace as a National Asset Act of 2010 - Establishes in the Executive Office of the President an Office of Cyberspace Policy, which shall: (1) develop a national strategy to increase the security and resiliency of cyberspace; (2) oversee, coordinate, and integrate federal policies and activities relating to cyberspace security and resiliency; (3) ensure that all federal agencies comply with appropriate guidelines, policies, and directives from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), other federal agencies with responsibilities relating to cyberspace security or resiliency, and the National Center for Cybersecurity and Communications (established by this Act); and (4) ensure that federal agencies have access to, receive, and appropriately disseminate law enforcement, intelligence, terrorism, and any other information relevant to the security of specified federal, military, and intelligence information infrastructure.
Requires the President to appoint a Director of Cyberspace Policy. Provides for access by the Director to specified cybersecurity-related information.
Amends the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (HSA) to establish within DHS a National Center for Cybersecurity and Communications (NCCC), which shall be headed by a Director, who shall: (1) work cooperatively with the private sector and lead the federal effort to secure, protect, and ensure the resiliency of the federal and national information infrastructure; and (2) work with the Assistant Secretary for Infrastructure Protection to coordinate the information, communications, and physical infrastructure protection responsibilities and activities of NCCC and the Office of Infrastructure Protection. Transfers to NCCC the National Cyber Security Division, the Office of Emergency Communications, and the National Communications System.
Establishes within NCCC the United States Computer Emergency Readiness Team (US-CERT), which shall: (1) collect, coordinate, and disseminate information on risks to specified federal information infrastructure and security controls; and (2) establish a mechanism for engagement with the private sector.
Requires the NCCC Director to: (1) establish a program for sharing information with and between NCCC and other federal agencies; (2) develop guidelines to protect the privacy and civil liberties of U.S. persons and intelligence sources and methods; (3) establish a program to promote and provide technical assistance relating to the implementation of best practices and related standards and guidelines for securing the national information infrastructure; and (4) identify and evaluate the cyber vulnerabilities to covered critical infrastructure on a continuous and sector-by-sector basis and issue regulations establishing risk-based security performance requirements to secure covered critical infrastructure against cyber vulnerabilities.
The summary continues for 8 more paragraphs. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on June 16, 2010. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on September 13, 2010: Referred to the Subcommittee on Higher Education, Lifelong Learning, and Competitiveness.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 111th Congress (2009-10), 383 of the 10,778 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.6 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
JANE HARMAN (D-CA) introduced it on June 16, 2010, and 1 member has since signed on as a cosponsor.
They are 1 Republican.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on June 16, 2010, 5930 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 5841 days ago, on September 13, 2010.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 111th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2011 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers