FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Hearing Statement of Cybersecurity Infrastructure Protection Innovation Subcommittee Chairman Cedric Richmond D-LA Resourcing DHS’ Cybersecurity and Innovation Missions A Review of the Fiscal Year 2021 Budget Request for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency and the Science and Technology Directorate March 11 2020 The Solarium Commission’s final report will be formally released hours from now and I look forward to working with you and Chairman Thompson to codify important recommendations aimed at empowering CISA and better securing our elections I understand Director Krebs was very engaged in the Cyberspace Solarium Toward that end I will be interested in know if the FY 2021 budget request for CISA is sufficient to implement the recommendations aimed at increasing CISA’s capacity and if not what additional resources will be necessary At the outset I want to debunk the myth that Federal agencies can do more with less I support eliminating waste and increasing efficiency but the fact is that with more you can do more Technology is evolving and creating opportunities for our adversaries to hack critical infrastructure disrupt our elections and hold State and local government networks hostage CISA must be equipped to be an effective Federal partner and S T must be positioned to develop and identify technology to strengthen our defenses The President’s FY 2021 budget does fails both of these important components Last year Committee Democrats led a bipartisan letter to appropriators seeking additional funding for CISA’s cybersecurity mission Together we succeeded in increasing CISA’s cyber budget by $350 million accelerating efforts to secure Federal networks and ramping up CISA’s threat analysis and response capabilities for private sector critical infrastructure owners and operators and State and local governments Despite bipartisan support for increasing CISA’s cybersecurity budget the President’s Budget cuts it by about over $150 million I don’t understand how a cut of that magnitude makes communities trying to defend themselves against ransomware attacks Federal networks or critical lifeline services – from power to communications – any more secure Director Krebs you know your mission I want to know what resources you need to do it I would also like to express my concern about the Administration’s decision to eliminate the CFATS program To the best of my knowledge there is no intelligence that suggests that the security risks to chemical facilities has diminished And there is no evidence that a voluntary security framework will yield the same security results as a regulatory program You can be certain the Members of this Committee will not allow CFATS to expire I am also concerned about the Administration’s continued efforts to cut S T Last fall this Committee held a hearing exploring the security threats posed by emerging technologies Despite ample evidence that U S investment in research and development is lacking this budget cuts R D for cybersecurity as well as important University Programs and Centers of Excellence We cannot afford to continue to defer investments in R D and I will work hard to restore funding Before I close I want to make clear my expectation that Members of this Committee will receive accurate candid intelligence about threats to our elections Last month the Intelligence Community’s assessment of whether the Russian government’s influence activities were intended to advance the President’s re-election appeared to change over night because the President did not like the intelligence As Members of Congress we must have the information necessary to understand the threat and ensure you have budget and resources you need to defend against sophisticated cyber threats # # # Media contact Adam Comis at 202 225-9978