```

[House Report 114-390]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]

114th Congress }                                     { Report
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2nd Session   }                                     { 114-390

======================================================================
 
              SAFE AND SECURE FEDERAL WEBSITES ACT OF 2015

                                _______
                                

January 6, 2016.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
              State of the Union and ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Chaffetz, from the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                        [To accompany H.R. 451]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, to whom 
was referred the bill (H.R. 451) to ensure the functionality 
and security of new Federal websites that collect personally 
identifiable information, and for other purposes, having 
considered the same, reports favorably thereon with an 
amendment and recommends that the bill as amended do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
Committee Statement and Views....................................     5
Section-by-Section...............................................     8
Explanation of Amendments........................................     9
Committee Consideration..........................................     9
Roll Call Votes..................................................     9
Application of Law to the Legislative Branch.....................    10
Statement of Oversight Findings and Recommendations of the 
  Committee......................................................    10
Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives............    10
Duplication of Federal Programs..................................    10
Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings..............................    10
Federal Advisory Committee Act...................................    10
Unfunded Mandate Statement.......................................    10
Earmark Identification...........................................    11
Committee Estimate...............................................    11
Budget Authority and Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate...    11
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............    12

    The amendment is as follows:
  Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the 
following:

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

  This Act may be cited as the ``Safe and Secure Federal 
Websites Act of 2015''.

SEC. 2. ENSURING FUNCTIONALITY AND SECURITY OF NEW FEDERAL WEBSITES 
                    THAT COLLECT PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION.

  (a) Certification Requirement.--
          (1) In general.--Except as otherwise provided under 
        this subsection, an agency may not deploy or make 
        available to the public a new Federal PII website until 
        the date on which the chief information officer of the 
        agency submits a certification to Congress that the 
        website is fully functional and secure.
          (2) Transition.--In the case of a new Federal PII 
        website that is operational on the date of the 
        enactment of this Act, paragraph (1) shall not apply 
        until the end of the 90-day period beginning on such 
        date of enactment. If the certification required under 
        paragraph (1) for such website has not been submitted 
        to Congress before the end of such period, the head of 
        the responsible agency shall render the website 
        inaccessible to the public until such certification is 
        submitted to Congress.
          (3) Exception for beta website with explicit 
        permission.--Paragraph (1) shall not apply to a website 
        (or portion thereof) that is in a development or 
        testing phase, if the following conditions are met:
                  (A) A member of the public may access PII-
                related portions of the website only after 
                executing an agreement that acknowledges the 
                risks involved.
                  (B) No agency compelled, enjoined, or 
                otherwise provided incentives for such a member 
                to access the website for such purposes.
          (4) Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be 
        construed as applying to a website that is operated 
        entirely by an entity (such as a State or locality) 
        that is independent of the Federal Government, 
        regardless of the receipt of funding in support of such 
        website from the Federal Government.
  (b) Definitions.--In this section:
          (1) Agency.--The term ``agency'' has the meaning 
        given that term under section 551 of title 5, United 
        States Code.
          (2) Fully functional.--The term ``fully functional'' 
        means, with respect to a new Federal PII website, that 
        the website can fully support the activities for which 
        it is designed or intended with regard to the 
        eliciting, collection, storage, or maintenance of 
        personally identifiable information, including handling 
        a volume of queries relating to such information 
        commensurate with the purpose for which the website is 
        designed.
          (3) New federal personally identifiable information 
        website (new federal pii website).--The terms ``new 
        Federal personally identifiable information website'' 
        and ``new Federal PII website'' mean a website that--
                  (A) is operated by (or under a contract with) 
                an agency;
                  (B) elicits, collects, stores, or maintains 
                personally identifiable information of 
                individuals and is accessible to the public; 
                and
                  (C) is first made accessible to the public 
                and collects or stores personally identifiable 
                information of individuals, on or after October 
                1, 2012.
          (4) Operational.--The term ``operational'' means, 
        with respect to a website, that such website elicits, 
        collects, stores, or maintains personally identifiable 
        information of members of the public and is accessible 
        to the public.
          (5) Personally identifiable information (pii).--The 
        terms ``personally identifiable information'' and 
        ``PII'' mean any information about an individual 
        elicited, collected, stored, or maintained by an 
        agency, including--
                  (A) any information that can be used to 
                distinguish or trace the identity of an 
                individual, such as a name, a social security 
                number, a date and place of birth, a mother's 
                maiden name, or biometric records; and
                  (B) any other information that is linked or 
                linkable to an individual, such as medical, 
                educational, financial, and employment 
                information.
          (6) Responsible agency.--The term ``responsible 
        agency'' means, with respect to a new Federal PII 
        website, the agency that is responsible for the 
        operation (whether directly or through contracts with 
        other entities) of the website.
          (7) Secure.--The term ``secure'' means, with respect 
        to a new Federal PII website, that the following 
        requirements are met:
                  (A) The website is in compliance with 
                subchapter II of chapter 35 of title 44, United 
                States Code.
                  (B) The website ensures that personally 
                identifiable information elicited, collected, 
                stored, or maintained in connection with the 
                website is captured at the latest possible step 
                in a user input sequence.
                  (C) The responsible agency for the website 
                has encrypted, masked, or taken other similar 
                actions to protect personally identifiable 
                information elicited, collected, stored, or 
                maintained in connection with the website.
                  (D) The responsible agency for the website 
                has taken reasonable efforts to minimize domain 
                name confusion, including through additional 
                domain registrations.
                  (E) The responsible agency requires all 
                personnel who have access to personally 
                identifiable information in connection with the 
                website to have completed a Standard Form 85P 
                and signed a non-disclosure agreement with 
                respect to personally identifiable information, 
                and the agency takes proper precautions to 
                ensure that only the fewest reasonable number 
                of trustworthy persons may access such 
                information.
                  (F) The responsible agency maintains (either 
                directly or through contract) sufficient 
                personnel to respond in a timely manner to 
                issues relating to the proper functioning and 
                security of the website, and to monitor on an 
                ongoing basis existing and emerging security 
                threats to the website.
          (8) State.--The term ``State'' means each State of 
        the United States, the District of Columbia, each 
        territory or possession of the United States, and each 
        federally recognized Indian tribe.

SEC. 3. PRIVACY BREACH REQUIREMENTS.

  (a) Information Security Amendment.--Subchapter II of chapter 
35 of title 44, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
end the following:

``Sec. 3559. Privacy breach requirements

  ``(a) Policies and Procedures.--The Director of the Office of 
Management and Budget shall establish and oversee policies and 
procedures for agencies to follow in the event of a breach of 
information security involving the disclosure of personally 
identifiable information, including requirements for--
          ``(1) not later than 72 hours after the agency 
        discovers such a breach, or discovers evidence that 
        reasonably indicates such a breach has occurred, notice 
        to the individuals whose personally identifiable 
        information could be compromised as a result of such 
        breach;
          ``(2) timely reporting to a Federal cybersecurity 
        center, as designated by the Director of the Office of 
        Management and Budget; and
          ``(3) any additional actions that the Director finds 
        necessary and appropriate, including data breach 
        analysis, fraud resolution services, identity theft 
        insurance, and credit protection or monitoring 
        services.
  ``(b) Required Agency Action.--The head of each agency shall 
ensure that actions taken in response to a breach of 
information security involving the disclosure of personally 
identifiable information under the authority or control of the 
agency comply with policies and procedures established by the 
Director of the Office of Management and Budget under 
subsection (a).
  ``(c) Report.--Not later than March 1 of each year, the 
Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall report to 
Congress on agency compliance with the policies and procedures 
established under subsection (a).
  ``(d) Federal Cybersecurity Center Defined.--The term 
`Federal cybersecurity center' means any of the following:
          ``(1) The Department of Defense Cyber Crime Center.
          ``(2) The Intelligence Community Incident Response 
        Center.
          ``(3) The United States Cyber Command Joint 
        Operations Center.
          ``(4) The National Cyber Investigative Joint Task 
        Force.
          ``(5) Central Security Service Threat Operations 
        Center of the National Security Agency.
          ``(6) The United States Computer Emergency Readiness 
        Team.
          ``(7) Any successor to a center, team, or task force 
        described in paragraphs (1) through (6).
          ``(8) Any center that the Director of the Office of 
        Management and Budget determines is appropriate to 
        carry out the requirements of this section.''.
  (b) Technical and Conforming Amendment.--The table of 
sections for subchapter II of chapter 35 of title 44, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:

``3559. Privacy breach requirements.''.

                     Committee Statement and Views

                          PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

    H.R. 451, the Safe and Secure Federal Websites Act of 2015, 
would enhance security and functionality requirements for 
federal websites handling personally identifiable information 
(PII). The legislation would require certification that new 
federal websites meet certain standards for security and 
functionality before the website can be made accessible to the 
public and would prohibit federal websites made accessible 
after October 1, 2012, from being kept available to the public 
without this certification. The legislation would help increase 
public trust by heightening security standards for the 
protection of PII. The legislation would also increase the 
number of required actions for federal agencies in the event of 
a data breach involving PII, including a requirement to notify 
potential victims of the breach within 72 hours of the 
discovery that their information may have been compromised.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    Data breaches are becoming increasingly prevalent and 
damaging to the American public. At the same time, there is 
growing demand for access to web-based services both in the 
private and public sectors. Federal agencies are increasingly 
offering online service options for purposes of meeting these 
demands, providing further access, and increasing efficiency of 
services.\1\ Federal agencies have a responsibility to the 
public trust, which includes taking all necessary measures to 
protect information that the American people have entrusted to 
their government.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\Gov't Accountability Office, Testimony before the Subc. on 
Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection, & Security Technologies, 
Comm. on Homeland Security, Cybersecurity: Recent Data Breaches 
Illustrate Need for Strong Controls across Federal Agencies (June 24, 
2015) (GAO-15-725T), available at http://www.gao.gov/assets/680/
670935.pdf [hereinafter GAO June 2015]; See S. Comm. on Homeland 
Security & Gov't Affairs, The IRS Data Breach: Steps to Protect 
Americans' Personal Information, (June 2, 2015) (statement of John A. 
Koskinen, Commissioner, Internal Revenue Service), available at http://
www.hsgac.senate.gov/hearings/the-irs-data-breach-steps-to-protect-
americans-personal-information.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Recent reports and incidents have indicated an inconsistent 
and insufficient approach to information security protocols 
across the federal government. Last year, reported incidents 
involving PII nearly tripled compared to the number reported 
only five years before--increasing from 10,481 in fiscal year 
2009 to 27,624 in fiscal year 2014.\2\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \2\GAO June 2015, supra note 1.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Even a small selection of incidents from 2014 and 2015 show 
the widespread impact of data breaches. A September 2014 breach 
of the U.S. Postal Service resulted in unauthorized access to 
PII of an estimated 800,000 postal employees.\3\ From February 
to May 2015, breaches of an Internal Revenue Service website 
led to the release of approximately 100,000 taxpayers' PII.\4\ 
In June 2015, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) reported 
a cyber-intrusion detected in April 2015. The intrusion into 
OPM computer systems resulted in the compromise of 4.2 million 
individuals' PII.\5\ A separate breach of OPM's systems exposed 
background investigation data--including the highly sensitive 
information provided by federal employees and federal 
contractor through the SF-86.\6\ According to current reports, 
the breach may have compromised the PII data of as many as 18 
million individuals.\7\ This most recent OPM data breach brings 
a renewed sense of urgency to information security, and it is 
more important than ever for agencies to take the necessary 
precautions to protect PII.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \3\GAO June 2015, supra note 1.
    \4\S. Comm. on Finance, Internal Revenue Service Data Theft 
Affecting Taxpayer Information, 114th Cong. (June 2, 2015) (statement 
of John A. Koskinen, Commissioner, Internal Revenue Service), available 
at http://www.finance.senate.gov/imo/media/doc/
2015FINAL%20JAK%20testimony%20SFC%20060215%20on%20GT.pdf.
    \5\S. Comm. on Homeland Security & Gov't Affairs, Under Attack: 
Federal Cybersecurity & the OPM Data Breach, 114th Cong. (June 25, 
2015) (statement of Katherine Archuleta, Director, Office of Personnel 
Management), available at http://www.hsgac.senate.gov/hearings/under-
attack-federal-cybersecurity-and-the-opm-data-breach; Pierre Thomas, 
Jack Date, Mike Levin and Jack Cloherty, Cabinet Secretaries 
Potentially exposed in OPM Data Beach, ABCNews (June 9, 2015), 
available at http://abcnews.go.com/US/cabinet-secretaries-potentially-
exposed-opm-data-breach/story?id=31626021.
    \6\Damian Paletta, Hackers Likely Stole Security-Clearance 
Information During Breach of Government Agency, Wall St. J., (June 12, 
2015), available at http://www.wsj.com/articles/security-clearance-
information-likely-stolen-during-breach-of-government-agency-
1434143820.
    \7\GovExec Staff, Size of the OPM Hack Quadruples to 18 Million, 
Gov't Executive, (June 22, 2015), available at http://www.govexec.com/
pay-benefits/2015/06/size-opm-hack-quadruples-18-million/116011/.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Federal websites are an important component of agency 
collection and storage of PII, as websites are the predominant 
means whereby individual supply PII to the federal government. 
Federal websites often store and transmit PII data for 
workability, allowing users to update and change their data as 
needed. Thus, information security controls of federal PII 
websites are critical to the website's integrity and the safe 
collection and storage of PII data. According to the Government 
Accountability Office (GAO), cyber threats and data breaches 
show that Federal agencies must implement stronger information 
security controls.\8\ GAO has reported weaknesses in 
information security controls at in a number of federal 
agencies, including not ensuring that only authorized users can 
access an agency's system and not using encryption to protect 
sensitive data from being intercepted and compromised.\9\ H.R. 
451 addresses these weaknesses by requiring that an agency's 
Chief Information Officer (CIO) certify that the agency has 
limited the number of individuals with access to PII and that 
PII data collected and maintained by agencies is encrypted, 
masked, or similarly protected.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \8\Gov't Accountability Office, Testimony Before the Subcommittees 
on Research and Technology and Oversight, Committee on Science, Space, 
and Technology, H. of Representatives, Information Security: Cyber 
Threats & Data Breaches Illustrate Need for Stronger Controls across 
Federal Agencies (July 8, 2015) (GAO-15-758T), available at http://
www.gao.gov/assets/680/671253.pdf; Gov't Accountability Office, 
Testimony Before the Comm. on Oversight & Gov't Reform, H. of 
Representatives, Cybersecurity: Actions Needed to Address Challenges 
Facing Federal Systems (Apr. 22, 2015) (GAO-15-573T), available at 
http://www.gao.gov/assets/670/669810.pdf.
    \9\Id. at 11.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    In addition to security, functionality is a vital component 
for federal PII websites. Users should be able to use the 
websites for their intended purposes. The federal government 
continues to struggle with achieving functionality of its 
websites. The October 2013 deployment of Healthcare.gov is just 
one example of a website launched with significant functional 
deficiencies. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act 
relies on health insurance exchanges to facilitate the purchase 
of health insurance plans by individuals and small 
businesses.\10\ The Department of Health and Human Services' 
(HHS) Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is 
responsible for facilitating the federal health insurance 
exchange and for launching and operating HealthCare.gov, the 
federal exchange web portal.\11\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \10\Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, P.L.111-148, 3201-
02, 124 Stat. 119, 442, 454 (Mar. 23, 2010), as amended.
    \11\Gov't Accountability Office, Actions Needed to Address 
Weaknesses in Information Security & Privacy Controls (Sept. 2014) 
(GAO-14-730), available at http://www.gao.gov/assets/670/665840.pdf 
[hereinafter GAO Sept. 2014].
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    HealthCare.gov launched on October 1, 2013, with numerous 
problems. Many consumers were unable to create accounts or 
browse the various insurance plans. Those consumers who were 
successful often had incomplete and inaccurate enrollment 
information sent from the exchange to health insurers.\12\ 
There were significant problems with the functionality of 
HealthCare.gov for months after launch.\13\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \12\Christopher Weaver, Shira Ovide and Louise Radnofsky, Software, 
Design Defects Cripple Health-Care Website, Wall St. J. (Oct. 6, 2013), 
available at http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/
SB10001424052702304441404579119740283413018; Christopher Weaver and 
Louise Radnofsky, Health Website Woes Widen as Insurers Get Wrong Data, 
Wall St. J. (Oct. 17, 2013), available at http://online.wsj.com/news/
articles/SB10001424052702304410204579142141827109638.
    \13\Ezra Klein, Five Thoughts on the Obamacare Disaster, The 
Washington Post, Oct. 14, 2013, available at http://
www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/wonkblog/wp/2013/10/14/five-thoughts-on-
the-obamacare-disaster/.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Embedded in the functionality issues were security concerns 
that could result from technological deficiencies. A September 
2014 GAO report found that while CMS took steps to protect PII 
maintained by Healthcare.gov, considering the degree of the 
systems complexity, CMS did not take all reasonable steps to 
limit security and privacy risks.\14\ Similarly, the 
Committee's investigation into the Healthcare.gov rollout found 
that several CMS and HHS officials with responsibility for 
ensuring website functionality expressed concerns about the 
website's readiness prior to the Healthcare.gov rollout.\15\ 
Officials advised delaying or limiting the full launch, but the 
website was deployed despite these concerns. However, to date, 
there has been no successful malicious breach of 
Healthcare.gov. H.R. 451 would require agency CIOs to certify 
to Congress that a new federal PII website is secure and fully 
functional for its intended purposes prior to launching the 
website.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \14\GAO Sept. 2014, supra note 9.
    \15\See H. Comm. on Oversight & Gov't Reform, HHS' Own Security 
Concerns about Healthcare.gov, 113th Cong. (Jan. 16, 2014), available 
at https://oversight.house.gov/hearing/hhs-security-concerns-
healthcare-gov/; H. Comm. on Oversight & Gov't Reform, Obamacare 
Implementation: The Rollout of Healthcare.gov, 113th Cong., (Nov. 13, 
2013), available at 
https://oversight.house.gov/hearing/obamacare-implementation-rollout-
healthcare-gov/.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

                          LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    H.R. 451, the Safe and Secure Federal Websites Act of 2015, 
was introduced on January 21, 2015 by Congressman Charles J. 
``Chuck'' Fleischmann (R-TN) and referred to the Committee on 
Oversight and Government Reform. On May 19, 2015, the Committee 
on Oversight and Government Reform ordered H.R. 451 favorably 
reported, with an amendment.
    Similar legislation passed the House by voice vote, as 
amended, under suspension on the rules on July 28, 2014 (H.R. 
3635).

                           Section-by-Section

Section 1. Short title

    Designates the short title as the ``Safe and Secure Federal 
Websites Act of 2015.''

Section 2. Ensuring functionality and security of new federal websites 
        that collect personally identifiable information

    Explains the certification requirement for Federal websites 
that elicit, collect, store, or maintain personally 
identifiable information (PII) of individuals. Prohibits an 
agency (as defined by section 551 of title 5, United States 
Code) from making a new Federal PII website available to the 
public until the agency's Chief Information Officer (CIO) 
certifies to Congress that the website is fully functional and 
secure.
    An agency's CIO must certify to Congress that an existing 
Federal PII website is fully functional and secure within 90 
days of enactment of this law. After the 90-day period, any 
Federal PII website that has not been certified under these 
requirements must be rendered inaccessible to the public until 
certification is submitted.
    Makes an exception to the certification requirement when 
the Federal PII website is in the development or testing phase. 
The exception only applies if the website meets two conditions: 
(1) a member of the public cannot access PII-related portions 
of the website without first acknowledging that he or she 
understands the risks; and (2) a member of the public is not 
receiving agency compelled, enjoined, or otherwise provided 
incentives for accessing PII-related portions of the website.
    This section only applies to websites operated by the 
Federal Government. It does not apply to websites operated by 
entities independent of the Federal Government, such as a state 
or locality, even if the independent entity or the website 
operates on some form of Federal funding.
    Defines ``personally identifiable information'' and ``PII'' 
as any information about an individual elicited, collected, 
stored, or maintained by an agency including the following: (1) 
any information that can be used to distinguish or trace the 
identity of an individual, such as a name, a social security 
number, a date and place of birth, a mother's maiden name, or 
biometric records; and (2) any other information that is linked 
or linkable to an individual, such as medical, educational, 
financial, and employment information. Defines ``responsible 
agency'' as the agency that is responsible for the operation 
(whether directly or through contracts with other entities) of 
the website.
    Defines ``operational'' as a website that elicits, 
collects, stores, or maintains PII of members of the public and 
is accessible to the public. Defines ``new Federal personally 
identifiable information website'' and ``new Federal PII 
website'' as a website that is (1) operated by (or under 
contract with) a Federal agency; (2) operational; and (3) 
operational on or after October 1, 2012. For a new Federal PII 
website to be considered ``fully functional,'' the website must 
be able to fully support the activities for which it is 
designed or intended, specifically with regard to PII-related 
functions. To be considered ``secure,'' the new Federal PII 
website must meet the following requirements: (1) in compliance 
with information security provisions of U.S. Code, specifically 
Subchapter II of Chapter 35 of Title 44; (2) captures PII at 
the latest possible step in a user input sequence; (3) PII 
captured or stored through the website has been encrypted, 
masked, or similarly protected by the agency; (4) agency 
responsible for website development and operation has taken all 
reasonable steps to help prevent domain name confusion, 
including through additional domain registrations; (5) 
responsible agency takes proper precautions to ensure only 
trustworthy persons may access PII in connection with the 
website, number of persons with access to such information is 
limited to the fewest reasonable individuals, and all personnel 
who have access to PII in connection with the website have 
completed a Standard Form 85P and signed a non-disclosure 
agreement with respect to PII; and (6) responsible agency 
maintains sufficient personnel to respond in a timely manner to 
issues relating to the proper functioning and security of the 
website and sufficient personnel to monitor on an ongoing basis 
existing and emerging security threats to the website.

Section 3. Privacy breach requirements

    Requires the Director of the Office of Management and 
Budget (OMB) to establish and oversee policies and procedures 
for agencies to follow in the event of a breach of information 
security involving the disclosure of PII. The OMB requirements 
must include, and agencies facing a privacy breach must comply 
with, the following: (1) agency must notify affected 
individuals no later than 72 hours after the agency discovers 
the breach or evidence reasonably indicating such a breach 
occurred; (2) agency must report the breach to a Federal 
cybersecurity center as defined by this section; and (3) any 
additional actions that the Director deems, including data 
breach analysis, fraud resolution services, identity theft 
insurance, and credit protection or monitoring services. 
Requires the Director of OMB to report to Congress annually on 
agency compliance with the aforementioned policies and 
procedures.

                       Explanation of Amendments

    Congresswoman Robin Kelly (D-IL) offered an amendment that 
creates an additional requirement for a new federal website to 
be certified as ``secure.'' This amendment would require the 
responsible agency to encrypt, mask, or take other actions to 
protect personally identifiable information related to a 
website, and limit to the fewest reasonable number the 
personnel with access to personally identifiable information. 
The website must meet both requirements before it can be 
certified as ``secure.'' The Kelly amendment was adopted by 
voice vote.

                        Committee Consideration

    On May 19, 2015, the Committee met in open session and 
ordered reported favorably the bill, H.R. 451, as amended, by 
voice vote, a quorum being present.

                            Roll Call Votes

    There were no recorded votes during Full Committee 
consideration of H.R. 451.

              Application of Law to the Legislative Branch

    Section 102(b)(3) of Public Law 104-1 requires a 
description of the application of this bill to the legislative 
branch where the bill relates to the terms and conditions of 
employment or access to public services and accommodations. 
This bill ensures the functionality and security of new Federal 
websites that collect personally identifiable information. As 
such this bill does not relate to employment or access to 
public services and accommodations.

  Statement of Oversight Findings and Recommendations of the Committee

    In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII and clause 
(2)(b)(1) of rule X of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives, the Committee's oversight findings and 
recommendations are reflected in the descriptive portions of 
this report.

         Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives

    In accordance with clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives, the Committee's performance 
goal or objective of this bill is to ensure the functionality 
and security of new Federal websites that collect personally 
identifiable information.

                    Duplication of Federal Programs

    No provision of H.R. 451 establishes or reauthorizes a 
program of the Federal Government known to be duplicative of 
another Federal program, a program that was included in any 
report from the Government Accountability Office to Congress 
pursuant to section 21 of Public Law 111-139, or a program 
related to a program identified in the most recent Catalog of 
Federal Domestic Assistance.

                  Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings

    The Committee estimates that enacting this bill does direct 
the completion of a specific rule making within the meaning of 
5 U.S.C. 551. H.R. 451 requires the Director of the Office of 
Management and Budget to develop policies and procedures for 
agencies when responding to an information security breach that 
involves personally identifiable information.

                     Federal Advisory Committee Act

    The Committee finds that the legislation does not establish 
or authorize the establishment of an advisory committee within 
the definition of 5 U.S.C. App., Section 5(b).

                       Unfunded Mandate Statement

    Section 423 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment 
Control Act (as amended by Section 101(a)(2) of the Unfunded 
Mandates Reform Act, P.L. 104-4) requires a statement as to 
whether the provisions of the reported include unfunded 
mandates. In compliance with this requirement the Committee has 
received a letter from the Congressional Budget Office included 
herein.

                         Earmark Identification

    This bill does not include any congressional earmarks, 
limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined in 
clause 9 of rule XXI.

                           Committee Estimate

    Clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives requires an estimate and a comparison by the 
Committee of the costs that would be incurred in carrying out 
this bill. However, clause 3(d)(2)(B) of that rule provides 
that this requirement does not apply when the Committee has 
included in its report a timely submitted cost estimate of the 
bill prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 
1974.

     Budget Authority and Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate

    With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(2) of rule 
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 
308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 and with respect 
to requirements of clause (3)(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives and section 402 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has received 
the following cost estimate for this bill from the Director of 
Congressional Budget Office:

H.R. 451--Safe and Secure Federal Websites Act of 2015

    CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 451 would have no 
significant effect on the federal budget. The legislation would 
amend federal laws that protect the privacy of personally 
identifiable information collected by the government. 
Personally identifiable information includes any information 
that identifies an individual such as name, Social Security 
number, and medical or financial records. The legislation would 
prohibit an agency from deploying a new website until the 
agency's Chief Information Officer certifies that all such 
information is safe and secure. Existing federal websites would 
have 90 days following enactment of H.R. 451 to comply with 
this requirement. The legislation also would require the Office 
of Management and Budget (OMB) to issue policies and procedures 
for agencies to follow in the event of a security breach of a 
federal data system that contains personally identifiable 
information.
    No single federal law or regulation governs the security of 
all types of sensitive personal information collected by 
federal agencies. The Federal Information Security Management 
Act requires agencies to develop, document, and implement 
agencywide security programs for sensitive information. The 
Privacy Act of 1974 governs the collection, use, and 
dissemination by federal agencies of personal records. OMB's 
2007 memorandum on safeguarding against and responding to the 
breach of personally identifiable information requires all 
agencies to implement a policy to safeguard such information 
and to notify affected individuals of a security breach.
    Because those laws and policies regarding the security of 
personally identifiable information and already in place, CBO 
estimates that the cost of certifying the safety of information 
collected by federal websites would be less than $500,000 over 
the next five years. Enacting H.R. 451 could affect direct 
spending by some agencies (such as the Tennessee Valley 
Authority) because they are authorized to use receipts from the 
sale of goods, fees, and other collections to cover their 
operating costs. Therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures apply. 
Because most of those agencies can make adjustments to the 
amounts collected, CBO estimates that any net changes in direct 
spending by those agencies would not be significant. Enacting 
the bill would not affect revenues.
    H.R. 451 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Matthew 
Pickford. The estimate was approved by Theresa Gullo, Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.

         Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported

  In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by 
the bill, as reported, are shown as follows (new matter is 
printed in italics and existing law in which no change is 
proposed is shown in roman):

                      TITLE 44, UNITED STATES CODE

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *
         CHAPTER 35--COORDINATION OF FEDERAL INFORMATION POLICY

                SUBCHAPTER I--FEDERAL INFORMATION POLICY

Sec.
3501. Purposes.
     * * * * * * *

                   SUBCHAPTER II--INFORMATION SECURITY

     * * * * * * *
3559. Privacy breach requirements.
     * * * * * * *

                   SUBCHAPTER II--INFORMATION SECURITY

     * * * * * * *

Sec. 3559. Privacy breach requirements

  (a) Policies and Procedures.--The Director of the Office of 
Management and Budget shall establish and oversee policies and 
procedures for agencies to follow in the event of a breach of 
information security involving the disclosure of personally 
identifiable information, including requirements for--
          (1) not later than 72 hours after the agency 
        discovers such a breach, or discovers evidence that 
        reasonably indicates such a breach has occurred, notice 
        to the individuals whose personally identifiable 
        information could be compromised as a result of such 
        breach;
          (2) timely reporting to a Federal cybersecurity 
        center, as designated by the Director of the Office of 
        Management and Budget; and
          (3) any additional actions that the Director finds 
        necessary and appropriate, including data breach 
        analysis, fraud resolution services, identity theft 
        insurance, and credit protection or monitoring 
        services.
  (b) Required Agency Action.--The head of each agency shall 
ensure that actions taken in response to a breach of 
information security involving the disclosure of personally 
identifiable information under the authority or control of the 
agency comply with policies and procedures established by the 
Director of the Office of Management and Budget under 
subsection (a).
  (c) Report.--Not later than March 1 of each year, the 
Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall report to 
Congress on agency compliance with the policies and procedures 
established under subsection (a).
  (d) Federal Cybersecurity Center Defined.--The term ``Federal 
cybersecurity center'' means any of the following:
          (1) The Department of Defense Cyber Crime Center.
          (2) The Intelligence Community Incident Response 
        Center.
          (3) The United States Cyber Command Joint Operations 
        Center.
          (4) The National Cyber Investigative Joint Task 
        Force.
          (5) Central Security Service Threat Operations Center 
        of the National Security Agency.
          (6) The United States Computer Emergency Readiness 
        Team.
          (7) Any successor to a center, team, or task force 
        described in paragraphs (1) through (6).
          (8) Any center that the Director of the Office of 
        Management and Budget determines is appropriate to 
        carry out the requirements of this section.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

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