WASHINGTON, D.C.—On March 17, 2010, Senator John D. (Jay) Rockefeller IV, Chairman of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and Senator Olympia J. Snowe (R-ME), unveiled legislation to protect America from the growing cyber threat. The legislation was favorably reported out of the Commerce Committee on March 24, 2010.

The Rockefeller-Snowe bill offers the first comprehensive approach to developing a coordinated public-private partnership to prevent, deter, and respond to cyber attacks. Industry leaders and associations are praising the Rockefeller-Snowe bill as critically important to America’s national and economic security.

Here’s what people are saying:

“We applaud Senators Rockefeller and Snowe for moving ahead on legislation to address the critical security of our nation's cyber networks. This legislation will help government and private sector networks to work together in identifying critical infrastructure and developing cyber emergency response plans. As information is increasingly transmitted via the Internet, combating cyber threats is critical to safeguarding our nation's broadband’s future. Passage of the Rockefeller-Snowe Cybersecurity Act is a necessary and important step in protecting our national infrastructure and we look forward to working together with the Committee as this bill moves forward.”

Kyle McSlarrow, President & CEO, National Cable & Telecommunications Association

“We applaud you and your staff for the open, collaborative, year-long process that led to these dramatic improvements in the legislation. You listened to our concerns. You were willing to consider proposals that CDT and other stakeholders suggested, and you made significant changes.”

Center for Democracy & Technology

“America’s economic prosperity depends on our ability to effectively respond to the increasingly sophisticated attacks on our global information infrastructure. The Rockefeller-Snowe bill takes positive and strategic steps to address these problems, and we commend the Senators’ hard work and attentiveness to detail in drafting this legislation. We applaud Chairman Rockefeller’s decision to move to markup next week, and look forward to continuing the positive dialogue that he and Sen. Snowe have allowed to flourish throughout these deliberations.”

Walter B. McCormick Jr., President & CEO, USTelecom

“Americans face increasingly sophisticated cyber-threats aimed at our families, businesses and government. The legislation drafted by Senators Rockefeller and Snowe puts the nation on a much stronger footing to confront these threats. Verizon works every day to protect our customers, which include many government clients, and the networks they use from cyber-threats. We appreciate the senators’ leadership and collaborative public-private approach to this very important challenge.”

Peter Davidson, Senior Vice President of federal government relations, Verizon

“I want to commend Chairman Rockefeller and Senator Snowe for their leadership and thoughtful approach to protecting our Nation's networks from harm. They recognize that for a truly modern, world-class information infrastructure, our country's networks need to be protected, safe and secure from attacks, AT&T supports this effort. This bill ensures that government and businesses can conduct their work, provide our citizens with vital information and services and move our digital economy forward, safeguarding our global leadership. We at AT&T look forward to working with Chairman Rockefeller and Senator Snowe and their colleagues to ensure this critical issue is addressed.”

Tim McKone, Executive Vice President, AT&T

“The Committee’s rigorous open stakeholder process has resulted in a much improved measure that recognizes cybersecurity as a shared government and private sector responsibility. Symantec supports robust public-private collaboration on cybersecurity, led by private sector innovation, and based on market-driven incentives. Taking the important steps to better protect our nation’s critical infrastructure is a key to our continued national and economic security…Symantec is committed to working with the Committee on this important legislation.”

Letter from Mark Bregman, Chief Technology Officer, Symantec

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