After working through the last remaining amendments up for consideration, the Senate voted 74-21 to pass the Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act (CISA) on Oct. 27, moving forward on the biggest piece of cybersecurity legislation to reach the floor this year.
The bill establishes the Department of Homeland Security as the central agency for receiving and disseminating information about known cyberattacks, in the hopes that sharing that knowledge will help the government and private sector better protect themselves from the ever-evolving cyber threats.
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The other six amendments — most of which concerned increasing privacy provisions — failed by clear margins.
The most controversial amendment also failed by the widest margin. A proposal from Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., to allow companies to share information with the FBI and Secret Service but not DHS was roundly defeated, 22-73.
With CISA’s passage, the bill now moves to a conference committee to hammer out how it will be merged with two similar bills passed in the House earlier this year.
Lawmakers said they hope to have the final law ready for the president’s signature before the end of the year.
