House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Michael McCaul (R-Tex.) formally introduced the “National Cybersecurity and Critical Infrastructure Protection (NCCIP) Act” this month as H.R. 3696. The bill, which has drawn the support of leading Republicans and Democrats on the Homeland Security Committee, would formalize information-sharing agreements between the government and critical infrastructure representatives and encourage the development of sector-specific cybersecurity best practices.
Much of H.R. 3696 would formally codify ongoing cooperative cybersecurity efforts, such as:
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Designating the National Cybersecurity and Communications Integration Center (NCCIC) as “a federal civilian information sharing interface” responsible for sharing real-time cyber threat information among critical infrastructure stakeholders, government representatives, and sector Information Sharing and Analysis Centers (ISACs).
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Recognizing a Sector Coordinating Council (SCC) for each critical infrastructure sector. SCCs would “serve as the primary policy, planning, and communications entity for coordinating” with DHS and other relevant agencies on cybersecurity programs.
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Recognizing at least one ISAC for each critical infrastructure sector. ISACs would carry out information sharing and emergency response coordination responsibilities for each sector, and aid in the development of procedures to support information-sharing mechanisms with the NCCIC.
Other portions of the legislation would direct the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), in cooperation with relevant ISACs and SCCs, to develop voluntary, industry-led cybersecurity standards and best practices for each critical infrastructure sector, including the water and wastewater sector. The government would not gain the power to mandate adoption of the standards, however, and the bill omits earlier draft language that would have required SCCs to actively encourage implementation by individual owners and operators.
Chairman McCaul has not yet scheduled a hearing or markup for the legislation, and it is not known whether Republican House leaders intend to bring it to the floor in 2014.