Committee hearing on HB 2574 centers on how to enforce and fund state cybersecurity standards

A legislative committee held a hearing on House Bill 2574 on Feb. 25 to consider extending and revising 2024 cybersecurity reforms and to set how state agencies will be assessed and held to account.

The bill, introduced by the reviser’s office, would remove statutory expiration dates on parts of 2024’s Senate Bill 291, create a Judicial Branch Technology Oversight Council and change how chief information security officers (CISOs) and cybersecurity programs are assessed, reported and audited. The committee heard proponents, neutral testimony from the legislative post audit office and questions from multiple representatives about funding, audit frequency and the limits of legislative authority.

"House bill 25 74 removes the expiration on certain cybersecurity requirements that you put in place as the chair indicated in Senate Bill 2 91 in 2024," the reviser said, summarizing the bill’s principal aim to preserve and refine elements of SB 291. The reviser added the bill would "require assessment of each executive branch agency with compliance with their cybersecurity requirements" and "create the judicial branch technology oversight council."

Representative Kyle Hoffman, who led…