Burgess Owens: “I would first like to thank Chairman Gordon and the committee for their work on this important bipartisan legislation.…”

“I would first like to thank Chairman Gordon and the committee for their work on this important bipartisan legislation. My amendment would expand the cybersecurity strategic R&D plan, created under H.R. 4061, by adding a component to address information sharing between Federal agencies. Information technology has advanced rapidly in the last two decades, benefiting nearly every sector of our economy; but our dependence on IT in many ways increased our exposure to unconventional attacks. H.R. 4061 will help address our vulnerabilities by creating an overall vision for the Federal cybersecurity R&D portfolio. Improving the coordination of cybersecurity research and development activities is the first step in preventing a catastrophic attack on our IT infrastructure. Mr. Chairman, my amendment would improve the strategic R&D plan by including a component on technologies to secure sensitive information shared among Federal agencies. Our Nation's security is at risk without protections in place to safeguard the flow of information within the Federal Government. I believe the amendment I am offering today gets at the heart of addressing this problem, and I urge its adoption.”