Cyber Defense National Guard Act

To require the Director of National Intelligence to conduct a study on the feasibility of establishing a Cyber Defense National Guard. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Cyber Defense National Guard Act 2. Study on establishment of Cyber Defense National Guard (a) Study The Director of National Intelligence, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall conduct a study on the feasibility of establishing a Cyber Defense National Guard. (b) Contents The study required under subsection (a) shall include an analysis of— (1) the cost of creating a Cyber Defense National Guard; (2) the number of persons who would be needed to defend the critical infrastructure of the United States from a cyber attack or manmade intentional or unintentional catastrophic incident; (3) the sources of potential members of a Cyber Defense National Guard, including industry, academic institutions, research facilities, and Federal contractors; (4) which elements of the Federal Government would be best equipped to recruit, train, and manage a Cyber Defense National Guard; (5) the criteria required for persons to serve in a Cyber Defense National Guard; (6) if an incident disrupts communications in a region or area, what resources can be pre-positioned and training instilled to assure the effectiveness and responsiveness of a Cyber Defense National Guard; (7) the minimum requirements for consideration for inclusion in a Cyber Defense National Guard; (8) the impact of the effectiveness of a Cyber Defense National Guard of the possibility that the population of potential recruits may be dominated by men and women without military, intelligence, law enforcement, or government work experience; (9) the recruitment and vetting costs for a Cyber Defense National Guard; (10) the frequency of cyber defense and unit cohesion training; (11) how well military discipline is able to be adapted for use for creating command and control systems and protocols for a Cyber Defense National Guard; (12) the logistics of allowing governors to use the Cyber Defense National Guard in States during times of cyber emergency; (13) the advantages and disadvantages of creating a Cyber Defense National Guard on the cyber security of the United States; and (14) whether a force trained to defend the networks of the United States in the event of a major attack or natural or manmade disaster will benefit overall efforts to defend the interests of the United States. (c) Report (1) Submission Not later than 240 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director of National Intelligence, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of Homeland Security, shall submit to the Committee on Armed Services, the Committee on Homeland Security, the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, and the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Armed Services, the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, the Select Committee on Intelligence, and the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate a report containing the results of the study required under subsection (a). (2) Form The report required under paragraph (1) shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified annex.

Summary: Cyber Defense National Guard Act This bill requires the Director of National Intelligence to report to Congress regarding the feasibility of establishing a Cyber Defense National Guard. The report must address: (1) the number of persons who would be needed to defend the critical infrastructure of the United States from a cyber attack or man-made intentional or unintentional catastrophic incident; (2) elements of the federal government that would be best equipped to recruit, train, and manage such a National Guard; (3) resources that can be pre-positioned and training that can be instilled to assure responsiveness if an incident disrupts communications in a region or area; (4) logistics of allowing governors to use such a National Guard in states during times of cyber emergency; and (5) whether a force trained to defend U.S. networks in a major attack or natural or man-made disaster will benefit overall efforts to defend the interests of the United States.