WASHINGTON, DC – Today, the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee (HSGAC) unanimously voted to advance Senator Jacky Rosen’s (D-NV) Federal Data Center Enhancement Act of 2022, bipartisan legislation she introduced with Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) and HSGAC Chair Gary Peters (D-MI) that would ensure that federal data centers meet standards to ensure they are safe from cyberattacks, terrorist attacks, and natural disasters, such as floods, storms, and wildfires. These data centers are the physical facilities where federal agencies store critical data and host key IT and cybersecurity infrastructure.
“With the growing threat of cyberattacks and natural disasters, we must take proactive steps to protect our critical data and ensure the highest standards of security,” said Senator Rosen. “I am thrilled that my bipartisan legislation to secure our federal data centers advanced out of committee and I look forward to it passing the Senate.”
The bipartisan Federal Data Center Enhancement Act of 2022 requires the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to coordinate a government-wide effort to develop strong minimum requirements for federal data centers related to cyber intrusions, data center availability, mission-critical uptime, and resilience against physical attacks, wildfires, and other natural disasters. Since 2010, more than 6,000 federal data centers have been consolidated, resulting in a cost-saving and cost avoidance of $5.8 billion. The Federal Data Center Enhancement Act of 2022 builds on this success, shifting the policy focus from consolidation to optimization, security, and resiliency.
