I 

114TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4743 

To authorize the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish a National 

Cybersecurity Preparedness Consortium, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 15, 2016 

Mr. CASTRO of Texas (for himself, Mr. RICHMOND, Mr. HURD of Texas, Mr. 

DOGGETT, Mr. CUELLAR, Mr. SMITH of Texas, and Mr. WELCH) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Homeland Security 

A BILL 

To authorize the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish 

a National Cybersecurity Preparedness Consortium, and 

for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Cybersecurity 

5 Preparedness Consortium Act of 2016’’. 

6 SEC. 2. NATIONAL CYBERSECURITY PREPAREDNESS CON7 SORTIUM. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Homeland Secu9 rity may establish a consortium to be known as the ‘‘NaVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:35 Mar 16, 2016 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4743.IH H4743

SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 4743 IH

1 tional Cybersecurity Preparedness Consortium’’ (in this 

2 section referred to as the ‘‘Consortium’’). 

3 (b) PURPOSE.—The purpose of the Consortium is to 

4 engage a range of academic, nonprofit, private industry, 

5 and Federal, State, and local government partners to sup6 port efforts to address cybersecurity risks and incidents 

7 (as such terms are defined in section 227 of the Homeland 

8 Security Act of 2002), including threats of terrorism and 

9 acts of terrorism. 

10 (c) FUNCTIONS.—The Consortium may— 

11 (1) provide training to State and local first re12 sponders and officials specifically for preparing for 

13 and responding to cybersecurity risks and incidents 

14 (as such terms are defined in section 227 of the 

15 Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 148)), in16 cluding threats of terrorism and acts of terrorism, in 

17 accordance with current law; 

18 (2) develop and update a curriculum utilizing 

19 existing programs and models in accordance with 

20 section 227 of the Homeland Security Act of 2002, 

21 for State and local first responders and officials, re22 lated to cybersecurity risks and incidents, including 

23 threats of terrorism and acts of terrorism; 

24 (3) provide technical assistance services to build 

25 and sustain capabilities in support of preparedness 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 4743 IH

1 for and response to cybersecurity risks and inci2 dents, including threats of terrorism and acts of ter3 rorism, in accordance with section 227 of the Home4 land Security Act of 2002; 

5 (4) conduct cross-sector cybersecurity training 

6 and simulation exercises for entities, including State 

7 and local governments, critical infrastructure owners 

8 and operators, and private industry, to encourage 

9 community-wide coordination in defending against 

10 and responding to cybersecurity risks and incidents, 

11 including threats of terrorism and acts of terrorism, 

12 in accordance with subsection (c) of section 228 of 

13 the Homeland Security Act of 2002 (6 U.S.C. 149); 

14 (5) coordinate with the national cybersecurity 

15 and communications integration center of the De16 partment of Homeland Security to help States and 

17 communities develop cybersecurity information shar18 ing programs, in accordance with section 227 of the 

19 Homeland Security Act of 2002, for the dissemina20 tion of homeland security information related to cy21 bersecurity risks and incidents, including threats of 

22 terrorism and acts of terrorism; and 

23 (6) coordinate with appropriate Department of 

24 Homeland Security cybersecurity and training offi25 cials to assist in the incorporation of cybersecurity 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 4743 IH

1 risk and incident prevention and response (including 

2 related to threats of terrorism and acts of terrorism) 

3 into existing State and local emergency plans. 

4 (d) PROHIBITION ON DUPLICATION.—In carrying out 

5 the functions under subsection (c), the Consortium may 

6 not duplicate existing programs or efforts. 

7 (e) MEMBERSHIP.—The Consortium shall consist of 

8 academic, nonprofit, industry, and government partners 

9 that develop, update, and deliver cybersecurity training in 

10 support of homeland security. Members shall have prior 

11 experience conducting cybersecurity training and exercises 

12 for State and local entities and shall be geographically di13 verse so as to cover different regions across the United 

14 States. 

15 (f) TERMINATION.—The Consortium shall terminate 

16 on the date that is five years after the date of the enact17 ment of this Act. 

Æ 


SSpencer on DSK4SPTVN1PROD with BILLS