Ride the Lightning

Biden Asks For $10.9 Billion in Funding for Federal Cybersecurity

March 30, 2022

The Washington Post reported on March 29 that President Biden’s proposed $5.8 trillion budget plan seeks $10.9 billion in cybersecurity funding across civilian government agencies, which is an 11 percent increase from his request last year.

This comes as the U.S. faces a host of cyberthreats like ransomware and potential Russian cyberattacks as the war in Ukraine continues.

Biden is proposing legislation to set up a 10-year, $10 billion grant program run out of the Election Assistance Commission, an independent government body that approves voting machine upgrades and does other election-related work.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) would get $2.5 billion in funding, a 19 percent increase over Biden’s request last year.

Biden also announced that he’s “calling for one of the largest investments in our national security in history” amid Russia’s war in Ukraine, with a requested defense spending increase of around 4 percent compared with last year’s request.

The plan also has smaller but still significant cyber proposals, like $22 million in funding for National Cyber Director Chris Inglis’s office, a boost in funding for the FBI’s cyber investigations teams and $300 million for the Technology Modernization Fund, which helps federal agencies get new IT infrastructure.

Lawmakers on Capitol Hill broadly praised the funding, but some said more is needed.

Senate Homeland Security Committee Chairman Gary Peters (D-Mich.) says he “supports providing appropriate funding for CISA to ensure it can conduct its mission — particularly as cybersecurity threats from the Russian government continue to grow,” an aide said.

Rep. Jim Langevin (D-R.I.), a commissioner on the Cyberspace Solarium Commission, praised the budget and its proposal to fund CISA but said he was “deeply concerned” that the budget didn’t include funding for the new State Department Bureau of Cyberspace and Digital Policy. Langevin said he would “fight to ensure that the State Department has the necessary resources to implement this new Bureau.”

Rep. John Katko (N.Y.), the House Homeland Security Committee’s top Republican, said, “This budget request would have been commendable a year ago, but the current cyber threat landscape has changed drastically and requires significantly more.” Katko called the request a “setback.” He added that “we have more to do to set CISA on the path to become a $5 billion agency within the next five years,” something he has long called for.

I wouldn’t be at all surprised if the President ended up with more cybersecurity funds than he asked for – there seems to be a great deal of bipartisan support (a term we haven’t heard often recently) for enhanced cybersecurity.

Sharon D. Nelson, Esq., President, Sensei Enterprises, Inc.
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