Senate Intelligence Committee Expected to Mark Up Cyber Info Sharing Bill Tuesday

The Senate Intelligence Committee said it expects to mark up the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA) Tuesday, moving ahead with the bill after it delayed consideration in late June. Privacy advocates and industry lobbyists told us Monday they expect CISA will clear Senate Intelligence but that other factors will determine how far it advances beyond that point. The markup, closed to the public, is to begin at 2:30 p.m. in 219 Hart.

The version of CISA up for action is expected to be largely the same as the version committee Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., released in June (CD June 26 p8). Industry has largely supported CISA while seeking tweaks to its language, while privacy advocates have publicly criticized the bill’s privacy protections as not being a sufficient improvement from the House-passed Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (HR-624).

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) continues to be publicly critical of CISA’s provisions, but expects the bill will clear Senate Intelligence on the strength of its backing from Feinstein and committee Vice Chairman Saxby Chambliss, R-Ga., said Gabe Rottman, a legislative counsel in the American Civil Liberties Union’s Washington Legislative Office. The ACLU has opposed CISA because of what it views as overly broad liability protections, along with potential loopholes that could allow U.S. intelligence agencies to access shared information and the potential for law enforcement to use information for non-cybersecurity purposes, he said.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) also remains concerned about CISA but is hopeful that the markup will result in “pro-privacy changes,” said Mark Jaycox, an EFF policy analyst. Jaycox faulted Senate Intelligence for holding a closed markup on CISA, “which means the public will learn about changes to the bill only after they release a report. It’s another sign that the Senate Intelligence Committee is a little out of step with the public’s expectation of transparency.” The ACLU and EFF were among the privacy groups that sent a joint letter to Feinstein, Chambliss and other Senate leaders in late June “in strong opposition” to CISA because of privacy issues (CD June 30 p13).

Possible amendments to CISA during the markup could determine whether the bill advances beyond Senate Intelligence, an industry lobbyist said. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has sought an expansion of CISA’s liability protections to give protection when an entity shares information with any federal civilian agency. The current bill allows protection only for information shared through the Department of Homeland Security. The number of days remaining of the Senate’s legislative calendar also continues to be a problem, particularly given the number of other lawmaking priorities it still needs to consider, the industry lobbyist said. Rottman said he believes that the stack-up of priorities will result in CISA not moving to a full Senate vote.