SVAC Act of 2022

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 7299, the Strengthening VA Cybersecurity Act of 2022, to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to obtain an independent cybersecurity assessment of information systems of the Department of Veterans Affairs.

According to the Department of Defense, cyber criminals target victims in order to weaken U.S. supply chains, threaten national security, and endanger the American way of life.

Although cyberattacks can potentially harm all Americans, attacks against veterans are especially problematic because of the vast population of veterans and the amount of data that is maintained about their service and benefits.

In the United States, there are an estimated 18.5 million veterans.

Currently, there are 1.2 million active-duty military members and 778,000 reserve forces. More than half of active-duty personnel have family member dependents.

Because there are so many veterans--and future veterans--the data systems that manage their service records, salaries, health conditions, and benefits provided to them and their families must be maintained securely and insulated from risk of being exposed, corrupted, deleted, or held for ransom.

Just as veterans have served America, protecting our safety and freedoms, it is vital that we protect veterans when they complete their service, start a new chapter of their life, and depend on our government to protect their personal information and privacy.

The Department of Veterans Affairs stores important material such as social security numbers, health records, financial information, and more. It is the Department's responsibility to protect and preserve veterans' data for future use and needs that the veterans may have.

In 1973, a firestorm at the National Personnel Records Center in St. Louis, Missouri

destroyed the records of veterans that served from 1912 to 1964. Almost 18 million records went up in flames. Up to 80 percent of veterans who discharged during this time had their records destroyed.

We learned from that conflagration, and since 1973, we have become increasingly reliant on technology, although that, too, creates exposure to potential vulnerabilities.

If cybersecurity is not protected appropriately, then millions of records could be at risk just like they were in 1973.

Strengthening information systems at Veterans Affairs will protect against cybersecurity threats, ransomware, insider threats, threats from foreign actors, phishing, and any other attacks that seek to cause harm.

Congress must require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to obtain an independent cybersecurity assessment of information systems at the Department of Veterans Affairs to ensure that this fragile information is protected.

This bill should be extremely important to all of us because it is personal. Many of our colleagues in Congress are veterans. Many of our neighbors are veterans or have family and friends who are veterans. They are our constituents, our community leaders, and often, our heroes and sheroes.

I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this critical bill that will safeguard the information of millions of veterans and their families.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 7299) to require the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to obtain an independent cybersecurity assessment of information systems of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 7299, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support H.R. 7299, the Strengthening VA Cybersecurity Act of 2022. This bill represents a bipartisan, bicameral effort to oversee the Department of Veterans Affairs' cybersecurity efforts.

This legislation requires independent assessment of the VA's cybersecurity readiness by a federally funded research and development center, or FFRDC.

This bill is necessary because of the poor performance of VA in audits required by the Federal Information Security Modernization Act, also known as FISMA, and independent audits from the VA OIG on individual VA sites.

The bill also seeks to address the issue of ``shadow IT'' which is has been a priority of the committee this Congress. If VA does not know what is on its networks and can't identify assets being utilized outside of the Office of Information Technology, then VA can't secure it.

VA's repository of veterans' health information needs to be protected. We owe it to veterans to address these challenges now so that Congress and veterans can be assured that VA will secure their personal information.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all my colleagues to support H.R. 7299, as amended, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support H.R. 7299, as amended, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 7299, as amended, the Strengthening VA Cybersecurity Act of 2022.

VA is the second largest Federal agency, and it handles 9 million veterans' personal information. The Department is a big target for cyber criminals, and the Veterans' Affairs Committee is responsible for making sure their data is being protected.

Unfortunately, it can be hard to assess how well VA is truly performing on cybersecurity, and how successfully the money invested translates into better security for veterans' information.

This bill would require a third-party cybersecurity audit of VA to fill in the gaps left by the existing audits. While necessary, those audits tend to be compliance exercises.

In contrast, this legislation requires a hard look at actual VA systems and real-world vulnerabilities. The bill also requires VA to submit a detailed plan to remediate whatever weaknesses the third-party auditor finds.

Hostile nations are working around the clock to exploit any vulnerability in our networks or systems, especially with health records. We must stay one step ahead of them, and I appreciate Mr. Mrvan's work on this important issue.

Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to support the bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Committee on Veterans' Affairs be discharged and that the Senate proceed to the immediate consideration of the following bills en bloc: H.R. 6064, H.R. 6604, H.R. 6961, H.R. 7299, H.R. 7335, and S. 4949.

I ask unanimous consent that the bills, en bloc, be considered read a third time and passed and that the motions to reconsider be considered made and laid upon the table, all en bloc.

Madam Speaker, I am not recorded for Roll Call votes No. 481, No. 482, No. 483, No. 484, and No. 485. Had I been present, I would have voted Yes on Roll Call No. 481 En Bloc Suspensions (H.R. 5721, H.R. 7299, H.R. 7277, H.R. 4275, H.R. 6290, H.R. 5502, H.R. 8416); Yes on Roll Call No. 482 (S. 3369); Yes on Roll Call No. 483 (S. 4359); Yes on Roll Call No. 484 (H.R. 2250); and Yes on Roll Call No. 485 (H.R. 3630).