Serrano Votes Against Faulty Cybersecurity Bill

Statement

Congressman José E. Serrano voted against the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act (H.R. 3523) yesterday because of concerns about its effects on civil liberties and privacy. Despite a majority of Democrats voting in opposition, the House passed the bill by a margin of 248-168.

"I recognize the need protect our nation from cyber attacks and information security threats, but I could not support this bill as it was written," said Serrano. "We must ensure that we are not overreacting to threats --real and perceived--and undermining the privacy rights of law-abiding internet users. We should be narrowly targeting solutions to the threats we face, instead of broadly undermining our citizens' privacy protections and preventing accountability for misuse of people's information. I stand with President Obama in my opposition to this bill, because we must maintain a free and open internet while building our cyber-defenses. This bill fails to accomplish these goals.

"I am disappointed that Republicans, who control the flow of legislation and amendments on the House floor, were unwilling to allow debate and votes on several important amendments that would have addressed some of the bill's shortcomings. The few amendments that they did allow did not address these serious concerns. The sad part is that we could have easily passed a targeted bill that took solid, non-controversial steps to increase our security. Instead they offered this unacceptable bill. The fact of the matter is that by passing a bill that the President opposes, Republicans are only delaying action towards increasing internet security in the United States."

Source