I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 54 
To require the Secretary of Homeland Security to conduct a study on the 
feasibility of establishing a Civilian Cyber Defense National Resource 
in the Department of Homeland Security. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 3, 2017 
Ms. JACKSON LEE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on Homeland Security 
A BILL 
To require the Secretary of Homeland Security to conduct 
a study on the feasibility of establishing a Civilian Cyber 
Defense National Resource in the Department of Home-
land Security. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Department of Home-
land Security’s Cybersecurity Asset Protection of Infra-
structure under Terrorist Attack Logistical Structure or 
CAPITALS Act’’ or the ‘‘CAPITALS Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. STUDY ON ESTABLISHMENT OF DEPARTMENT OF 
HOMELAND SECURITY CIVILIAN CYBER DE-
FENSE NATIONAL RESOURCE. 
(a) STUDY.—The Secretary of Homeland Security 
shall conduct a study on the feasibility of establishing a 
Department of Homeland Security Civilian Cyber Defense 
National Resource. In carrying out such study, the Sec-
retary may consult with the Director of National Intel-
ligence and the Secretary of Defense. 
(b) CONTENTS.—The study required under sub-
section (a) shall include an analysis of— 
(1) the cost of creating a Civilian Cyber De-
fense National Resource in the Department of 
Homeland Security; 
(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 such a 
Civilian Cyber Defense National Reserve, including 
industry, academic institutions, research facilities, 
and Federal contractors; 
(4) which elements of the Department would be 
best equipped to recruit, train, and manage such a 
Civilian Cyber Defense National Resource; 
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(5) the criteria required for persons to serve in 
such a Civilian Cyber Defense National Resource; 
(6) the resources that could be pre-positioned 
and training instilled to assure the effectiveness and 
responsiveness of such a Civilian Cyber Defense Na-
tional Resource in the case of an incident that dis-
rupts communications in a region or area; 
(7) the minimum requirements for consider-
ation for inclusion in such a Civilian Cyber Defense 
National Resource; 
(8) in the case that potential recruits for such 
a Civilian Cyber Defense National Resource are pre-
dominantly individuals without military, intelligence, 
law enforcement, or government work experience, 
the likely impact of such lack of experience on the 
effectiveness of a Civilian Cyber Defense National 
Resource; 
(9) the recruitment and vetting costs for such 
a Civilian Cyber Defense National Resource; 
(10) the frequency of cyber defense and unit co-
hesion training necessary for maintaining such a Ci-
vilian Cyber Defense National Resource; 
(11) how well Department personnel would be 
able to be adapted for use in creating command and 
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control systems and protocols for a Civilian Cyber 
Defense National Resource; 
(12) the logistics of allowing governors to make 
requests of the Secretary of Homeland Security to 
use the Civilian Cyber Defense National Resource in 
States during times of cyber emergency; 
(13) the advantages and disadvantages of cre-
ating a Civilian Cyber Defense National Resource on 
the cybersecurity of the United States; and 
(14) whether a resource 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 Sec-
retary of Homeland Security shall submit to the 
Committee on Homeland Security of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Homeland 
Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate a 
report containing the results of the study required 
under subsection (a). 
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