Editor’s Note: In contradiction to the statement below, it is possible that the Administration does have sufficient statutory authority to enact binding cybersecurity regulations to protect critical infrastructure, see The Federal Cybersecurity Regulation Already in Place. Any such regulation would need to be developed in accordance in with the requirements of the “good government” laws that regulate the cyber-regulators, see here.
Senator Chuck Grassley made the following statement after the White House called a meeting with Senate staff about the President’s upcoming executive order on cybersecurity. Grassley is a co-author of the SECURE IT Act with Senators Senators John McCain, Kay Bailey Hutchison, Saxby Chambliss, Lisa Murkowski, Dan Coats, Ron Johnson and Richard Burr.
“The Senate staff meeting with representatives from the Obama Administration made clear that cybersecurity is a complex topic that should be addressed by the legislative process, rather than by administrative fiat via an Executive Order. The executive branch does not have the legal authority to implement a comprehensive cybersecurity policy. Consequently, an Executive Order could potentially result in intrusive regulation, confusion, gaps in coverage, and uneven application of policy, thus causing more harm than good. The Administration should work constructively with Congress to carefully craft legislation to improve our nation’s cybersecurity.”
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