House Homeland Security Committee advances seven bills

The House Committee on Homeland Security advanced seven pieces of legislation this week, including bills that would secure critical infrastructure networks, enhance air travel safety during COVID-19 and future pandemics, improve information sharing, and support first responders.

One of the bills is the DHS Industrial Control Systems Capabilities Enhancement Act of 2021 (H.R. 1833), designed to protect critical infrastructure from cyberattacks.

“As I’ve said from day one as Ranking Member of this Committee, we need to continue to bolster cybersecurity capabilities at CISA to defend our federal networks and the nation’s critical infrastructure from cyber threats. Already in 2021, the nation is confronting potentially two major cyber incidents facing federal and private sector networks,” Rep. John Katko (R-NY), the bill’s sponsor, said. “We have also recently witnessed the potential for real-world impact from cyberattacks stemming from a compromise of digital systems at a water treatment plant in Florida. This attack reinforces the need to solidify CISA’s lead role in protecting our nation’s critical infrastructure from cyber threats, particularly industrial control systems that underpin vital components of our daily lives.”

In addition, the committee advanced several other bills, including:

• H.R. 1871, The Transportation Security Transparency Improvement Act, introduced by Rep. Dan Bishop (R-NC).
• H.R. 1895, The Transportation Security Public Health Threat Preparedness Act of 2021, introduced by Rep. Carlos Gimenez (R-FL).
• H.R. 1850, The Supporting Research and Development for First Responders Act, introduced by Rep. Kathleen Rice (D-NY).
• H.R. 1870, The Strengthening Local Transportation Security Capabilities Act of 2021, introduced by Rep. Nanette Barragán (D-CA).
• H.R. 1877, The Security Screening During COVID-19 Act, introduced by Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-MO).
• H.R. 1893, The Transportation Security Preparedness Act of 2021, introduced by Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-NJ).