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Ohio Senate committee advances bill requiring local governments to adopt cybersecurity plans, limits ransom payments
Summary
A Senate committee amended and advanced legislation that would require counties, townships, municipalities, school districts and other political subdivisions to adopt cybersecurity programs and set rules for ransom-payment decisions, and added a records exemption for procurement information.
The Senate Financial Institutions, Insurance and Technology Committee on May 27 advanced Senate Bill 203, a measure that would require Ohio political subdivisions — counties, townships, cities, villages, school districts, conservancy and park districts — to adopt a cybersecurity program and restrict when a local government may pay a criminal ransom demand.
Sen. Schafer, the bill sponsor, told the committee the bill "requires all political subdivisions in Ohio ... to adopt a cybersecurity program" and prohibits a political subdivision from paying a ransom unless the governing legislative body takes a formal vote to do so.
The proposal also would require political subdivisions to notify the Department of Public Safety’s Division of Homeland Security of a cybersecurity incident no later than seven days after…
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